Barbados Sugar Sweetening Florida

-


Michael Headley




 Letter from Brooklyn

By Michael Headley

On March 07, it was a welcome sight to see the smiling faces of The Barbados Agricultural Management Company (BAMC) team as they celebrated the breakthrough into the United States (US) Miami, Florida, sugarcane market - on February 08, 20,000 two-pound packages of Barbados' Del Sur sugar were exported to Miami. And with more shipments planned for April, and continuing monthly - in additional containers - bodes well for the sugar industry, with the prospect of reaping some much-needed foreign reserves, to boost the economy, and also give the Barbados brand some international exposure.

Florida is the main producer of sugarcane in the US - 17.3 million tons were produced in 2021.  Overall, Florida produces about 20% of sugar consumed in the US.  Louisiana, Texas and Hawaii, are the other production sources.   The by-product, Blackstrap molasses, is mainly used for animal feed.

Let's hope that synergies can improve between the farmers and BAMC's marketing team so that quantities planted, would meet demand, and farmers would be compensated promptly.  Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Orlanda Atherley should continue to use the science, regarding time of planting/cutting, to get the maximum yield.  I hope that the planned four-and 50-pound bags, for future export, also come into fruition.

For nostalgic purposes, I always keep a 2LB package of Plantation Reserve, Barbados Traditional in my cupboard, for safe keeping and to be used sparingly.   

Congratulations BAMC and farmers alike. Keep up the good work.

Michael Headley is a social comentator based in Brooklyn, New York

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Barbados Elections 2013 and Cash

-
Image
The Mahogany Coconut Group submits that the real vote buying is in the upper echelons of our society. What we witnessed on Election Day was some voters getting   cash, cell phones, IPods and a bill paid here and there. The real votes were bought by those shadows- black and white, - who Dr. Don Blackman referred to a few decades ago! Of course Dr. Blackman talked only about white shadows but the corporate landscape has dramatically changed over the years – we now have shadows of all colors and ethnicities. While we shout from the roof tops about what took place on elections day, we bury our heads in the proverbial sand, by refusing to ask one simple question: How did the two political parties, both claiming to be rather financially impoverished, raise a conservative estimate of over twenty million dollars to pour into a three week campaign? We ask Dale Marshall (BLP) to tell us about the successful “cake sales and car washes” that raised their money. We ask Ronald Jones (DLP) to t
Read more

International Women's Day : Our Caribbean Women, Our Hope

-
Image
One Caribbean Nation As we celebrate International Womens’ Day, we are cognizant of the role our Caribbean women have played in the cultural social and economic growth of our region and evolving Caribbean civilization. They , like our men , have risen from the depths and decadence of slavery , to the highest political and corporate ladders in the region. They have given birth, to millions and have made and continue to make significant contributions to those in the Diaspora. In many cases, where they were not the biological mothers, they nurtured, cared and developed those , who were deprived of parenthood , and socio-economic hope. They are in our classrooms, directing young and fragile minds , how to navigate a world that we in the region , must forever avoid being dragged into conflicts of the so-called super powers. They are pursuing all the opportunities of our tertiary educational institutions, including the University of the West Undies, often in higher numbers than our men. I
Read more