Port of Spain, August 30, 2021 – Within the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), most nations are net importers of food and food products, importing a combined USD 5 billion in 2018. A similar trend applies to the national and regional supplies of seafood and fish products, which are generally unable to satisfy robust demand across CARICOM nations. More than a third of seafood consumed by CARICOM countries is imported.
Four new reports which were developed by the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI), under the GEF-FAO “Developing Organisational Capacity for Ecosystem Stewardship and Livelihoods in Caribbean Small-Scale Fisheries (StewardFish)” project highlight opportunities for improving intra-regional trade and consumption of seafood in the CARICOM region.
The reports include three country-level fisheries value chains analyses for the Dolphinfish (Mahi mahi) fishery in Barbados, Caribbean Spiny Lobster fishery in Jamaica, and Queen Conch fishery in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, respectively.