A Bold New Caribbean

Anecdotal evidence indicates that a significant percentage of Caribbean women involved in international trade are in the agro-processing sector, bringing added value and innovation to the use of local produce. Ranging from small cottage industry operations to medium-sized companies, they are introducing new fla- vours and applying improved techniques to traditional products to create new products. Frozen yams, pre- served sweet pawpaw (papaya), roasted pickled saltfish, bar-be-cue flavoured plantain chips, and bread- fruit pancake mix give you a small taste of the food products. In the health and wellness space, products such as body scrubs from coconut, lemongrass, or Blue Mountain coffee, avocado soaps, and turmeric face washes exist.

The Market Opportunities

CARIBBEAN INVESMENT FORUM

CARICOM members also have in place trade agreements granting similar access for their goods with the 28 member countries of the Eu- ropean Union and with Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Venezuela. Regionally, CARICOM members (except The Ba- hamas) have committed to the free movement of goods within a regional single market. While these markets and trade routes are less devel- oped, they present growth opportunities. In- deed, a CARICOM commitment to increase food security by significantly reducing the region’s enormous food import bill (up to 80% of foods consumed) has created an opening for food im- porters, distributors, and national governments to begin to buy more from local food manufac- turers. Many trading arrangements provide preferential access for Caribbean products to several key ex- port markets. The Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) and the Caribbean-Canada Trade Agreement (CARIBCAN) trade preference programs grant duty-free access to the large U.S. and Cana- dian markets, respectively. The CARIFORUM-UK Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) also pro- vides duty-free access for Caribbean products into the U.K. In these three markets reside large diaspora communities and the millions of tourists who return home from vacation in love with Carib- bean culture and food.

The Growth Challenges High import bills also mean that increasing the con- sumption of Caribbean food products by hotels is an- other area of opportunity. With the increased use of digital technologies, size has become less of an obstacle to exporting.Websites and e-commerce platforms allow the smallest producer to capture the attention of interested buyers outside of the domestic market. Amid the global lockdown, the companies and entrepreneurs that thrived were the ones that moved to embrace e-commerce. There is no turning back, and the advantages of making this shift are real. Without the need for brick-and-mortar stores, the barriers to entry are lower. With a website, a company becomes global. Size, however, can limit productive capacity, which im- pedes growth. A buyer’s comment on the CaribShop- per e-commerce platform underscores this reality. They had to buy less than they wanted to because the supply was limited.One of the most consistent factors hindering the growth of companies across the Carib- bean is the lack of access to capital. The region’s bank- ing system continues to fall short in recognizing cred- it-worthy business applicants. Donor programs have stepped up to provide start-up capital, particularly for women ownned businesses—however, a successful company seeking to expand operations struggles to access the needed capital.

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