The Guyana Government will be exploring new ways to assist rice farmers who continue to produce high volumes of paddy, but are finding it difficult to secure markets as they face low prices and increased production.

During a press conference yesterday, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo said the Government is exploring various measures to assist rice farmers, and those measures include seeking out new foreign markets, as well as creating avenues locally that can trigger a demand for the paddy. 

These interventions, the Vice President said, are to cushion further “fallout” in the rice growing sector which has been recording record breaking outputs, but reduced earnings.

“On the demand side, we have to work globally to try to open up more markets, but we are also competing with rice production from other parts of the world and we also look at how do we use our rice as an input into other manufacturing processes in Guyana. So, it is something that we have to get our best technologists and scientists to start looking at creating a domestic demand for rice that would lead to an output, where the rice forms an input into that output,” Mr. Jagdeo stated.

Mr. Jagdeo said he believes that a drying and storage facility in rice growing communities will solve some of the current challenges.  He explained that many farmers have a one week window between cutting the paddy and selling it. He said many are facing the risk of the paddy going bad on their hands when markets are not secured in a timely manner.

“So, one way of supporting the farmers is to ensure that you have adequate intake so that you don’t suffer spoilage and secondly, that they have a longer period in which they can own the paddy so that they can negotiate for higher prices and the only way that can happen is if the government invest in drying and storage facilities for the farmers,” Mr. Jagdeo said.

He also promised the Government’s continued assistance in irrigation, farm to market roads, and the supply of fertilizer. The Vice President said the current issue continues to engage the attention of the administration.

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