Though not visible, the coffee plant promised by the government of Venezuela is coming on stream, Dominica’s Ambassador to Venezuela and ALBA Coordinator Dr. Philbert Aaron told Dominica News Online.
Aaron said that while a definite time cannot be set for completion, efforts are underway to set up the plant.
“You don’t see physical construction but… it is important to note that what we’re trying to do is establish a whole industry. So the physical plant is just a part of it and there is a lot of planning work and consultation going on. Some of what’s going on are technical plans, I mean, specifics to construction and planning,” the ambassador said.
“Unfortunately, those are not visible right now but I can assure you that I have been part and the Ministry of Agriculture have also been party to ongoing discussions with the authorities in Venezuela and they’re not just public operatives. It’s a mix in Venezuela of a number of entities – private sector, farmers, cooperative groups, transporters and others,” he said.
Aaron asked persons to bear in mind that the project is a new, sophisticated and complex undertaking where there will be “the rebuilding of a whole industry from marketing, sales production, distribution, processing, so it’s a ticklish operation at that point”.
“This is the kind of operation that is really new and its is basically more sophisticated than others so it will be a little bit more taxing… There’s so many parts to this thing beyond just putting up a factory, a processing plant that we expected to be challenging,” he told DNO.
In May, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was officially been signed between the government of Dominica and Venezuela for work to begin on a coffee processing plant and the rehabilitation and expansion of coffee acreages in Dominica.
Among the responsibilities of Dominica under the MOU, 50,000 square feet or 1.5 acres had to be provided to establish the coffee processing plant. This area of land had been cleared and made available at One Mile, Portsmouth.
Dominica also had to provide a slab of approximately 20,000 square feet to install the structure as well as appropriate fencing and provide water and basic utilities and land available for demonstration and training of coffee producers.
Venezuela will produce the design for the plant, the construction of the shed supply and is responsible for the installation and commencement of coffee processing. They will also provide training for locals in the field.
Ambassador, Dr Philbert Aaron tries again, but with the same result. I have no doubt that this learned gentleman is lacking in commonsense and has questionable usefulness as an ambassador.
We have been told by papa Chavez that he will be providing us with a coffeee plant over five months ago and our Ambassador is now saying to us that after the plant was commissioned we are now doing the work which should have been undertaken before commissioning the plant. We should know where our raw materials would be sourced, who would be willing to purchase our products etc, we should not be trying to reinvent the wheel this late in the day. Our learned ambassador says the operation is ticklish, My question is, are we in D/ca reinventing the wheel? and if so why? there are numerous coffee plants all over the world, including Venezuela, can we not learn from the existing plants? do we have to develop our own designs?
Additionally, we need to understand that it takes about 4 years from planting coffee seedlings to reaping the bean for harvesting and although there has been talk about a coffee plant there has been no move by the agricultural division to encourage farmers to cultivate coffee, so where is the source of coffee? Dominica today, does not produce enough coffee for local consumption, so where are we going to obtain coffee for the manufacturing plant to produce coffee for an international market?
Dominica has an agricultural based economy and needs to prolong the shelf-life of its produce, but is coffee a good choice? We have bananas, avocado, passion fruit, oranges, grapefruits, coconut, ginger, mangoes, cinnamon, nutmeg, cassarva, potatoes, yams, breadfruits, Tannia, dasheen, sea moss, Sugar cane, sea salt etc all of which could be canned and exported, and for which a processing plant could be much more useful and would easily obtain the raw materials required, but a coffee plant would most definitely be a white or probably brown elephant.
I will submit that the thought of a coffee plant for Dominica is pure folly. We should learn from the activity generated by our water bottling plant. Most people in D/ca are now drinking Dominica’s bottled water which I can testify to, although water is tasteless, as being a pleasant cooling drink.
I am afraid that our Ambassador, The learned and experienced Dr. Philbert Aaron has again failed us. I can not believe that he would be party to the negotiation to install this brown elephant on us, Dominicans. Sadly, it seems, if beggars are no choosers in international relations, any one who can genuflect can be an ambassador provided you are willing to sing for your political supper.
Well if the plan does not work we will turn it into another stadium for those Portsmouth people to dance quadrille and drink rum man.
What is the problem?
Nero was fiddling whilst Rome was burning.
Do these so called agro experts even know how long it takes for a coffe plant to produce a decent berry?
Do they know how fickle the coffee plant is with its numerable diseases that could wipe it out overnight?
Who are those people that are going to plant one of the most labour intensive agro products? Man, even the slaves did not like looking after coffee.
Mind you, it is one way of investing illegally gotten gains! Villas is no longer a sure thing!!
DNO, please note that I did not call any names!
lets give them some chance, we are to eager to respond negatively.. what you all do not realise while you all sit there and waste allu time all the things allu think that will not happen are coming to pass….
– Venezuela, once a leading coffee exporter, has now become an importer, particularly from Brazil and Costa Rica, as local farmers have ceased growing the crop because of low intervention prices dictated by the Venezuelan govt.
– last year August the Venezuelan govt. took over the activities of the country’s two largest coffee processers after accusing them of hoarding and illegal exports (at higher than the the offical govt. price), particularly to Columbia.
– Dominica does, at present not produce enough coffee to meet the demand of local processor Bello.
– We can not compete on the world market with volume producers in low cost countries in either South- & Central America, Africa and Asia.
– If we eventually grow enough coffee to feed this new plant: a) Will the govt dictate prices, as is the case in Venezuela? b) What markets are we going to supply if not the volume ones? c) How do we guarantee an
income to the farmers during the period they plant and reap the first harvest?
d) Is this new operation going to compete with Bello?
Guess this is a case of the proverbial “gift horse”, difficult to decline without causing offence!?
He he he he he…lmao! A coffee plant with no raw material to process? We dont have enough coffee planted yet so why build the plant? Why not a fruit to juice processing plant or free inputs for the banana farmers? The money would be more wisely spent that way.
But at the end of the day this is what Dummie-in-cans wanted all along. LAYBARR POWERRRRRR! All that is in the pipeline….LMAO…he he he he he he he he he he he he !
LISTEN SKERITT …….stop this right now. stop it . i mean… this isn’t even a tactic. you guys are just making fun of us now. you are laughing in our face, boasting… you are simply saying we can do what we want say want we want get what we wnt and nothing can be done about it.
instead of apologizing to the public, this is what you come up with. stop insulting us. i have come to accept that there will alwys be coruption in high places but please don’t do this. is this the best you guys could come up with in response to the carbon fiASCO
Certainly a plan must have some projection of time. Should I get involed in production? when ? or should I put my land in something else? What is the projected price for a pound of fresh coffe berry? Is coffee going to be imported?
These are just a few concerns for the farmers referred to and these should have already been known if farmers are really part of this coffee business. Other stakeholders will have similar concerns.
Request for a small loan from the bank will ask for a plan and time schedule so how can this corffee project appear to be so vague? Please Aaron let us talk sensibly and have respect for people’s inteligence as there are many stakeholders looking at this.
That is subterfuge – Yes let the Carbon issue go away. Let us get the people excited about coffee. Aaron may I remind you that the only reason this administration is in power is because the opposition is lame. Granteed there are still a lot of ignorance in D/ca but we are not leaving in the days of ZOKO, SHERIDAN AND RBD. We can see right thru those old tricks that was used on the good old folks from lagoon like Mr Allan, BOBOY, MAFILE ,POIS WOUGE and the others. These good old folks will vote the shoe even if there was no lace, sole or heel on that shoe. It’s a different time Artheley. You and your cronies must recognize.
@FORWARD THINKING DOMINICAN: We must plan for the future.
I would like to be optimistic but somehow I sense lies. If Venezuela is providing the design and construction of the facilities required then why is Aaron talking about plans and specs. I would like to think that the Venezuelans have design and specifications ready. I get the impression that this is a retrofit coffee plant. After all the Chinese and government recklessly built a retrofit stadium in Roseau and if plans and spec was an issue then the stadium would not have been built as such. It appears that the only hold up to the coffee plant is Dominica’s contribution. That sounds like the West Coast Road /Mahuat problem. If someone was giving me a brand new house and Car and all I need to do is come up with the land – land that I posses – That house would be in construction no later than a month after the offer. It seems like we have a problem holding up to our part of the deal so I would suggest that the government put the president house ($27 Million) on the back burner and proceed with the coffee plant.
As to whether a coffee plant is a sustainable and viable project. I’m not sure but hey it’s worth a try. I must say that to become competitive and really tap into the coffee market we need the (1) real estate (2) We need to convince the consumers that our coffee is better than all these name brand coffee out there. If we are primarily targeting the regional market – tough luck cause we Caribbean people are not coffee crazy. How many of us go to a restaurant and ask for coffee in Dominica, St Lucia or Antigua? It maybe that Chavez and the government are aware of a promissory coffee market and on that point I’d say BRING ON THE COFFE PLANT.
When is the public going to see the master plan for the project? This would be visible work I imagine.
Although anything is better than nothing at all I am still confused as to why a coffee plant was chosen. The coffee industry is very competitive and relies on cheap labour. How are we going to compete and be sustainable in such an industry. We have many other crops that can be processed and be more competitive than coffee I believe.
Maybe we did not have a choice in the matter
@FORWARD THINKING DOMINICAN: Wow!…Please, do not be a ‘JACK-“…Are you one of those non thinking Dominicans,who sits with your mouth open,just waiting for some Govt.man to open his mouth,utter nonsense,and close your mouth and swallow?
How long have you heard about that same coffee plant?…..A coffee plant,is suppose to be a building…physical building!…Is it that complicated to build?…..Are we talking about “rocket science” here?…..Have you read the same “story” that I any other Dominican read?…..
That Guy is just making a mockery of the English language…He is lying to his teeth…being ”smart”,but not being clever….It would have been best if he kept his mouth shut..Good Lord,he got to be kidding me….he cannot be serious!….
And you!,…calling yourself..what?…”forward thinking Dominican”?…You make me want to throw-up..
If you say to me,or any other thinking Dominican, you are part of the propaganda machine,Ok,fine i will buy that…But please,don’t be like the other one and try to put a “spin” on something that you know nothing about,seems far fetch,and cannot deliver….Remember a promise is a comfort to a fool…..
The fact of the matter is Chavez made a promise to you all,and he is yet to deliver…All that other nonsense that Govt.man is uttering, it’s just that..”hogwash,crap..rubbish”….Check out this guy….
“You don’t see physical construction but… Some of what’s going on are technical plans, I mean, specifics to construction and planning,” the ambassador said.
the rebuilding of a whole industry from marketing, sales production, distribution, processing, so it’s a ticklish operation at that point”.This is the kind of operation that is really new and its is basically more sophisticated than others so it will be a little bit more taxing……
Are you kidding me?…Please:JUST PUT UP THE DAMN BUILDING…PHYSICALLY!…or, SHUT UP!
As i said before…The only time that a politician is speaking the truth,is when he keeps his mouth shut.
All the best……..
MANCHAT!!!
Wow fantastic news and I must say that this has been a very long time coming and so thrilled to see this project actually coming to fruition and becoming a reality.
This will help to assist in the provision of much needed local jobs in these taxing times on world economies and most of all get to see our products on the shelves of supermarkets across the globe and in turn bring in much needed foreign export revenue for the island. Well done to everyone working hard infront and behind the scenes.
Now let’s just pray that the same becomes a reality for all of the mangoes and abundance of tasty, organically grown fruits and vegitables that we grow in DA, and again we will see the natural juices boxed, canned and plastic bottled around the world and on sail in supermarkets as I just know we can do this.
I shall we waiting and watching as well as praying with baited breath and uptimistic and postive anticipation.
keep the good work coming I say.
ISLE OF BEAUTY, ISLE OF SPLENDOR DOMINICA!
“Aaron said that while a definite time cannot be set for completion, efforts are underway to set up the plant.”
This makes no sense. If there is a project planed, why would there be no date for completion? This can be drawn out for years if there is no end in sight. Does the media ask questions during these interviews?
This is simply a developing idea and nothing more. Next time I hope that there is something said that is more substantial.
Philbert Aaron and his inefficient DLP Govt. failed miserably in handling the situation involving Carbon and his other Dominican crew who are languishing in Venezuela. Philbert Aaron and his DLP GOVT. expressed lack of knowledge and inaction in the Diplomatic Field. The Dominican people cried foul and were extremely disappointed in the way Dominicans were treated by their Govt.
For months Govt. allowed the Dominicans to fend for themselves in an environment in Venezuela that was appalling and stressful. Members of the crew including Captain Carbon were very critical publicly of Govt’s inaction. Recently, most Dominicans speculated that Carbon was forced by authorities to retract his previous statements in an unsigned letter about his dire plight and Govt.’s unprofessional don’t care attitude towards its citizens in jeopardy.
Now to pacify Dominicans and to show a good face, Philbert Aaron spontaneously comes up with a statement about COFFEE PLANT. There is nothing concrete, no completion dates, no serious forward movement regarding Coffee Plant. The statement refers to things that had to or have to be done . It is shallow to say the least. Is that the status report after the signing of the MOU since MAY?
Nothing about the acreages of coffee to be planted. Which areas Coffee will be rehabilitated or planted. Nothing about the inputs of the Ministry of Agriculuture, which knew initially nothing about Coffee Plant being donated by Venezuela. The Ministry and Dominica was taken aback, surprised on hearing the spontaneous announcement by Chavez. There was no prior consultation or input from the Minister or Ministry of Agriculture or technicians or other stakeholders. Venezuela would be in control of every aspect of operations.
Venezuela has already sent down the old second hand equipment, will produce the design for the plant, the construction of the shed supply and is responsible for the installation and commencement of coffee processing. They will also provide training for locals in the field. Our Ministry of Agriculture is just being TAGGED along in that Venezuelan project to be set up in Dominica.
The Minister of Agriculture himself does not have a clue of what is going on. Philbert Aaron does not have a clue of what is gong on. The Ministry of Agriculture is in the dark as well and doesn’t have a clue of what Venezuela’s intentions are with regards to the establishment of that Venezuelan Coffee Plant in Dominica. The conclusion is, BEGGARS ARE NO CHOOSERS.
More work………
Diversion from the subject of the failure of our Goverment and diplomats and bribe regarding the Dominican citizen who was held hostage in venezula (Our new motherland) !!! Oh my God! Dominicans open your eyes and look closely!! Think deeply! These people are treating Dominicans like absolute idiots!!!