Caribbean trade chief paints grim outlook for region’s food exports

CORAL SPRING, Trelawny — Caribbean Export Development Agency Chief Executive Officer Damine Sinanan has warned that Caribbean countries will have to pay more to feed their populations for the rest of the year as rising energy and shipping costs, tighter export regulations, and disruptions to global trade threaten to deepen the region’s dependence on imported food. “We’re going to face more challenges in the year 2026,” Sinanan said, pointing to disruptions in international shipping and escalating commodity prices. “Ship traffic has collapsed from 160 ships to six ships per day. That’s going to impact our value chains,” he added. Sinanan was addressing delegates last Friday, ahead of the plenary session ‘Practical Building Blocks for Export Expansion’, on the final day of Caribbean Week of Agriculture 2026 at Ocean Coral Spring Hotel in Trelawny. His warning comes against the backdrop of a widening food import bill across the region. Agricultural imports, he noted, have surpassed US$5 billion, representing a 20 per cent increase from 2022, while Caribbean food and agriculture exports contracted by seven per cent in 2025 after reaching a peak the previous year. The situation, Sinanan said, leaves the region vulnerable to developments beyond its control. “Sugar alone has gone up 11 per cent in one month,” he said, warning that higher costs would be passed on to countries already relying heavily on imported food and agricultural products. He warned that new requirements in major export markets, including European Union deforestation regulations and United States food traceability rules, are now also additional threats. “All of this is going to impact our costs of doing business in the Caribbean region,” Sinanan said. He identified transportation and logistics as a major weakness in the regional food trade, with inefficient shipping routes, limited cold storage capacity, small cargo volumes, and border delays adding to the cost of moving agricultural products. Climate shocks are another threat to supply chains. “We have to bear in mind that these climate shocks can really disrupt our value chains and our supply chains, which can only impact the cost of doing business in the Caribbean region,” he said, pointing to the disruption caused by Hurricane Melissa. Sinanan also warned that fragmented sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) systems are restricting the region’s ability to expand trade. The Caribbean Export Development Agency CEO argued that multiple agencies, outdated legislation, weak enforcement, and limited financing have resulted in differing requirements across Caribbean countries, making it more difficult and expensive for exporters to access markets. “We don’t have a regional code for SPS, so everybody has their own rules in the Caribbean region,” he said. He proposed the adoption and implementation of 10 regional SPS standards, as well as a shared network of accredited laboratories, to harmonise requirements and reduce testing costs. Sinanan said support is also needed for small and medium-size enterprises through group certification, export- anchored supply schemes, shared pack houses, and cool rooms. But he argued that the region must also change what it sells, moving from primary commodities towards higher- value goods and services. “Can we encourage investment into the Caribbean region that can stimulate these value-added services and bring more money and more efficiency to the Caribbean region?” he questioned. Sinanan identified agri-tech and nutraceuticals as promising areas, citing digital irrigation, water management, protected agriculture, testing, traceability, and drone technology. He also pointed to turmeric, ginger, sea moss, gels, powders, and premium cocoa as products with growth potential, while suggesting that sargassum could be transformed from an environmental nuisance into a commercial opportunity. He also urged the region to diversify its markets, including through Caribbean tourism, the United States, Canada, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Latin America, which he described as an underrepresented market for Caribbean exporters.