No Pork Shortage For Christmas, But Farmers Want A Fair Price

As the holiday season approaches, Saint  Lucians often brace for shortages in key staples like eggs, and chicken due to increased demand.  And although pork is not normally on the scarcity list, pig farmers are stepping up to meet the festive demand. President of the Pig Farmers Association, Karl Daniel, has assured consumers that there will be no shortage of pork for the Christmas season, thanks to a surplus in local production. “We have an overproduction of pork locally, so the normal consumption during Christmas will be taken care of because we have a lot of suppliers,” Daniel confidently told St. Lucia Times.  Despite this positive outlook for consumers, he highlighted deeper systemic issues affecting the sector’s sustainability. According to Daniel, the primary challenge lies not in production but in the lack of a reliable market and a fair price to farmers for pork. “ While the government has implemented a mechanism to ensure the purchasing of a percentage of local pork, this system has proven inconsistent; there is a mechanism, but it’s not reliable,” he noted. “We do not have any input within that mechanism.” The uncertainty in the market creates difficulties for farmers, who often struggle to receive...