Thanks to the advantages offered by the state-of-the-art greenhouses in Trinidad and Tobago, the first batches of homegrown organic strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries should hit the local market by the first quarter of 2022.

The berries, which will be grown in a 12-acre, weather-resistant hydroponic greenhouse located at Cove Estate in Tobago, and will be USDA certified, will be on display on supermarket shelves in Port of Spain. The crops (currently imported) will be grown by Berrycove Limited, a company formed with Ansa Group, Alquimi Renewables LLC and Island Growers Caribbean.

Substitute imports

Ralph Birkhoff, general manager of Berrycove, says the company is solely focused on growing items that the country currently imports. “We don't grow any in the Caribbean. Jamaica produces a few, about 70.000 pounds a year, but that's for local use. We import a large quantity of berries here in Trinidad and Tobago and the region. We are bringing a level of technology that would allow us to farm them. The real focus is to substitute imports and save foreign exchange and create new opportunities for foreign exchange," he says, commenting that berry buyers, such as supermarkets and bakeries, have to buy these products in US dollars, while Berrycove products will be sold in local currency.

According to import data from the Central Statistical Office (CSO), Trinidad and Tobago imported 143.254 kilograms of fresh strawberries between January and April 2020, in addition to 13.283 kg of other berries. Birkhoff estimated that his company would be able to produce 40.000 pounds of berries per month, and while the focus will be on the local market, the plan is to increase production to supply the region as a whole.

Anti-hurricane greenhouses

The crops will be grown in greenhouses specially designed to face the inclemencies of the Caribbean climate and they are the only ones built to withstand a category five hurricane.

“We are resistant to earthquakes and pestilences, resistant to corrosion, we are resisting risks for agriculture and there is no need to use pesticides. Think of us as a food factory instead of a farm,” says Birkhoff, clarifying that they are not competing with indigenous or traditional farmers, as their only focus is on replacing imported food.

Birkhoff maintains that, although the first phase of the association with Ansa is in Trinidad and Tobago, this is a strategic association for the region thanks to the conglomerate's regional presence.

“The partnership means that we have the ability to build farms throughout the region with the exception of Barbados and Antigua, where we already have exclusive partnerships. For next year we will expand the farm considerably and we are looking to introduce an agro-processing plant to pack the products for regional export,” he says.

"The ultimate goal is to increase the farm's capacity to grow and produce berries for export, because we can be competitive for regional supply since we don't have to ship it too far," he says.

A growing market

The greenhouses were developed by Alquimi Renewables, a Connecticut-based company founded by Birkhoff in association with his technology group Island AgTech (IAT) and engineer Sprung Structures Ltd.

According to an industry report, the global market for commercial greenhouses is expected to grow from USD24.090 billion in 2020 to USD26.600 billion in 2021. According to analysts, this growth is mainly due to rapid urbanization and low availability of land. arable, along with the increasing demand for food due to population growth. The greenhouse market is expected to continue growing and will reach USD38.270 billion in 2025. According to the same data, Europe was the largest region in the commercial greenhouse market in 2020.

“At the end of 2020, there were an estimated 55 billion square feet of greenhouses on the planet and that number is increasing rapidly. Global investment in greenhouse agriculture exceeds $250.000 billion and is growing rapidly,” said Birkhoff.

“It is not cheap, but access to technology is open. We have limitations to what they can grow if we give them access, but it is open source. It is about sharing knowledge, sharing technology and sharing products”, he concludes.