U.S. company to cut farmers’ losses, supply CARICOM, South American markets with Guyanese food

Last Updated on Wednesday, 9 July 2025, 23:04 by Writer

United States-headquartered company Blumberg Grain and Logistics would be assisting Guyanese farmers to reduce their post-harvest losses, and establish a food hub in Guyana to serve Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and northern South American countries, officials said on Wednesday.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Blumberg Grain, Philip Blumberg said the project would entail providing a “very high technology” for storing and processing perishable fruits and vegetables as well as rice milling. He said the company could spend about US$15 million on constructing advanced shade houses in Guyana and the entire Caribbean. “We have a technology that uses a covering and a film that is very different from triple shade houses so it will be an advanced system,” he told Demerara Waves Online News. Mr Blumberg said his company was examining the volumes of agricultural produce in Guyana that would have to be processed.

While Guyana is food secure, Mr Blumberg said his company could slash post-harvest loss from the field to the market, resulting in more being made available for other markets in the Caribbean and South America. “That means more income to farmers. If there is a more marketable volume of agricultural goods, it’s a better, better world for your farmers and our farmers,” he said.

The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Blumberg Grain and Logistics unequivocally stated that “we’re prepared to join the Minister and the President in that effort to create a major regional hub.” The company would also be investing in a manufacturing plant. “We don’t just do food security. We do the full spectrum of the action and a manufacturing plant would be able to produce the most advanced shade houses, not only for Guyana but for export to our CARICOM and even in South America,” he said.

Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh said the food hub would be the “bridge” between northern South America and the Caribbean. “This project that Blumberg Grain and Logistics is partnering with us on represents an integral part of the construction and deployment of this food hub,” he said.