Montraville Farms partners with The Ocean Foundation for a unique agriculture project
Great news for St. Kitts and Nevis as Montraville Farms has partnered with The Ocean Foundation for an exceptional developmental agriculture project.
The Caribbean has been battling an overwhelming infestation of sargassum, macroalgae, over the past decade. Currently, the twin-island federation has been plagued with sargassum, and citizens living around the seaside have been complaining about the stench and the increased infestation blocking the beach shoreline. The effects have been devastating to the tourism industry over the years throughout the Caribbean.
To assist with the nuisance created by the excess sargassum, Montraville Farms has partnered with The Ocean Foundation, Grogenics, and the St. Kitts Marriott Resort & Royal Beach Casino to facilitate the removal of sargassum along the shoreline for organic agricultural practices.
The project stemmed from an initial partnership with The Ocean Foundation and Marriott International back in 2019.
In a release posted by The Ocean Foundation, Michael Kaine of Grogenics stated “Our success will be in helping to create alternative livelihoods for communities – from sargassum collection to composting, distribution, application, agriculture, agroforestry, and carbon credit generation – to reduce social vulnerability, increase food security and enhance climate resilience throughout the Caribbean Region”.
The seaweed repurposing market is growing in value each year, but sargassum has been overlooked due to its unpredictable nature. Sargassum is commonly used as fertilizer, soil conditioner, and animal feed.
The project will help to increase local farming security and mitigate climate change by separating and storing carbon in farming soils. Less than 10% of the produce purchased on the twin-island federation of St. Kitts and Nevis are grown locally as unfortunately, agriculture contributes to less than 2% of the GDP.
This partnership will allow Montraville Farm to utilize the repurposed sargassum for local organic farming.
Samal Duggins, CEO of Montraville Farms stated on the release from the Ocean Foundation “St. Kitts and Nevis while being one of the smallest nations, has a long and rich history in agriculture. Our aim is to build upon that legacy, positioning the country once again as a mecca for sustainable food production and efficient production techniques in the region”.
Montraville Farms is one of the leading agricultural corporations within the federation. It is an award-winning family-owned business and farm based in St. Kitts. Sustainable agro-technology, infrastructure, and methods are utilized aimed at advancing the food and nutrition security agenda in the region, while promoting education, skill development, job creation, and people empowerment. They are one of the leading top producers of specialty greens within the twin-island federation.
Liz Myke
Reporter
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