A Memorandum of Understanding was signed here this week, with the aim of strengthening food and nutrition security across the region.

The agreement was signed between the Ministry of Agriculture, and Channell and Trimart Supermarkets in Barbados.

Minister of Agriculture, Saboto Caesar says this collaboration is expected to create more export opportunities for local farmers.

"we are going to sign an MOU with the supermarket owner whereby several stakeholders are going to make the commitment to produce an excellent quality, packaged well and exported on time to ensure that we have the level of efficiency and efficacy needed to lift production and productivity in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the bottom line to put more monies into the pockets of the Farmers in our country and to engender food and nutrition security not only in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines but in Barbados."

Meanwhile … Managing Director of Channell and Trimart Supermarkets, Ronald Catlyn welcomes this strategic partnership that has been established.

"I would like to thank the Minister Caesar for having us here and Emmanuel for setting this meeting up where we can discuss the imports and doing more business with Saint Vincent along the agricultural line and have it all on an organized fashion.  We are quite impressed of what we have seen here in the production, in the fields and also in the processing area where it is gotten ready for export to Barbados. And I am happy to be here and I can see that we will be doing much business in the future."

And … owner of Farmacy Fruit and Vegetable of Barbados, Emmanuel Beryllia is pleased to be key stakeholder in this initiative.

"As a Barbadian coming to Saint Vincent and seeing firsthand how farmers and traffickers and everybody work together to make sure we get that food across the water. Man, I mean its humbling and so once we start to recognize that we have our unique gifts, Saint Vincent is growing in agriculture and I agree the farmers in Barbados should look to increase as well, but it's about connecting each other, helping each other that the only way we can... that the focus right now."

SOURCE: National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC Radio)