Over 4,000 acres of soybeans, with an average yield of 1.2 tonnes per acre, are currently being harvested at Tacama Gold Inc. in the Berbice River for the first crop this year.
President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali posted the update to his Facebook page on Monday, where he shared footage of the ongoing harvest.
In this year’s budget, the government allocated $967.8 million to further boost the capacity of the Tacama facility, which will include the installation of a conveyor system.
This system is expected to be installed by the end of the year to transport produce from the silos to the wharf.
According to the mid-year report, in the first half of 2024, $408.2 million was spent to improve this facility to efficiently produce corn and soya beans.
President, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali at the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean Ministerial Session earlier this year (DPI photo)
An additional three silos with a total capacity of 18,000 tonnes will be procured, bringing the total storage capacity to 27,000 tonnes.
This aligns with Guyana’s unwavering support for the production and expansion of corn and soya beans.
In the past three years, the government has invested over $1.4 billion in infrastructure development within the Tacama area to support the region’s agricultural production and cultivation targets.
As a result, Guyana is on track to achieve self-sufficiency in livestock feed production by 2025, reducing its reliance on imports.
This progress is evidenced by the approximately 10,000 acres of corn and soybeans cultivated in 2023.
Key investments have also been made in technology, such as field maps, GPS locators, drones, and multi-spectral cameras, aimed at advancing climate-smart agricultural practices to enhance productivity in the Tacama area.
At the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean Ministerial Session earlier this year, President Ali said these investments will go hand in hand to reduce the region’s large food import bill by 25 per cent by 2025.
“By the end of 2026, the region will be fully self-sufficient in corn, soya, black-eye peas and red beans. That’s hundreds of millions of US dollars that we will save from import in these areas by the end of 2026,” President Ali said. (DPI)
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