Agriculture Minister, Johnson Drigo has announced that the much talked about Venezuela-funded Abattoir situated in Layou Park will be officially open in April.
The facility was originally set to be completed by October 2013 but faced a series of setbacks.
As a matter of fact, equipment had to be replaced.
“We have to bear in mind that the Abattoir was constructed and the facility was there at least three years before it went to the testing phase, so some of the equipment had to be replaced to bring in more equipment,” Drigo explained. “The company had to order equipment from Spain, they have since done that and they are presently on site doing all the finishing touches for the opening of the Abattoir.”
He add, “Within a month time the Abattoir will be officially opened as you know that government is preparing to provide funds for farmers, the poultry and pork farmers in preparations for production phase. The funds will be in the AID Bank and farmers will have access to these funds.”
Drigo said government believe that Dominicans will receive a wholesome fresh product when the Abattoir officially opens
“In time we expect to meet at least 40 percent of the chicken that we consume,” he noted.
Authorities say the Abattoir costs about $10-million. They say upon completion it will have a capacity output of 1,000 birds per hour and 50 pigs per day. They say it was being built to ensure food security, reduce the import bill and to provide employment in Dominica.
Wait for thee announcement on March 31. “Abattoir to opening postponed due to (what ever excuse they can come up with).
For once please complete a project and have it fully operational, these are huge multi million dollar investments which can definitely help the country move forward.
Way too many incomplete projects around the island.
Johnson, why don’t you tell the supremo that we are not ready to run that abattoir on a sustainable basis. I know your tremble before him but it is not your fault that he insists that place must be up and running only because it was a gift from his late friend Chavez. You only inherited that problem and now it is becoming a nightmare and now you know why other Ministers do not like that to have that job for agriculture. Just tell him the truth and you will sleep more easy.
So what Drigo is saying is that 3 years ago the structure was built and during that period the equipment had been sitting there in idle land. So whose fault it is Drigo. I guess there is no one to blame but just that it happened. So Drigo now think that we must understand that it is ok and acceptable to piss money down the drain.
One of my biggest problem with this administration besides coruption is their boldface arrogance . They never take responsibility for their failures. The government of Venezuela gave you a gift and your only responsibility was to successfully commissions the facility and you failed. But then again this administration has a track record of failure so why should I even expect any less from them
Talk to us about the coffee plant nuh Drigo.
What about Morocco Hotel
Layou River
Kempinski flash
Playing fields unfinished
There is some good in Chinese doing it themselves if not is corruption corruption
Coast Guard Base
Airport Road
Roseau Improvement
Did you say you are opening that slaughterhouse on the 1st. of April Johnson? How appropriate for flying pigs and chickens that lay chocolate Easter eggs.
When Pepsico (the owners of KFC) certify that place as an authorized supplier of chicken I will eat it and not before. I do not trust Dominica standards., period.
Smh…Dumb-ni-can. With sentiments like that how can we progress (Crab in Barrel). People like you don’t deserve to have opinions. Stop typing readddd, listennn and keep reading and listening but please don’t type in the comment feild and pleaseeee don’t let anyone else know yr opinions!!!!!
if you do not trust your own who are you!! help keep jobs at your home
Is that why so many Dominicans are unemployed or desperate to leave? No, not for Venezuela, North Korea or even Cuba but is a green card they want for the U.S.A. That is the truth bro.
There is is logic in this argument. As I understand it KFC franchisees must obtain their supplies from approved sources. Is the local operator authorized to obtain their chickens from the local goverment abattoir, if they can supply on a regular, sustainable base in the first place. I think this is a fair question.
Hoping animal welfare has been considered in all of this. No cruelty involved.
Correction. Eat , Import.
That’s good news but where are we gonna get all those animals from, from what I see in Dominica you can hardly find a pig or a chicken on the street. Hope they not gonna important sick animals from overseas. One thing for sure I will make sure my family don’t it any meat from this place. I really have to see heavy poultry and meat farming in Dominica before my family can eat from this place. Dominica stop putting the cart before the horse. That goes for the coffee plant too.
2 weeks ago, I saw 2 chickens on sale in a local supermarket. The locally produced one costs $43 and the imported one cost $33 guess which one I bought?
The one filled with hormone augmentation chemicals and poison?
You have a choice Dante.
if this opens and remains open and operational after one year i will vote labour and tell my family to do the same .
but dont hold your breath
I hear dat.
Just doh try to open it on da 1st of April!
Dat government doh tired take people for fools?
Great work but they have to assist all famers despite he/she political affiliations. Mr. Drigo share the bread for the betterment of the country and the motivation of the famers, also give the people that don’t support you but support UWP, ITS OK!
My motto with this corrupt and lying administration is, WHEN I SEE I WILL BELIEVE. The other thing is, it’s easy to open a door but another thing to supply the business to keep the door opened.
This is a joke. The roads to the abattoir are in a state of disrepair so bad the animals to be slaughtered will probably die on the way. Dominica is in a very bad way. Where are they going to get the animals from to slaughter and where are they going to sell them? This is bound to fail. It is built in the wrong place. Really another failed project. No environmental test was done. The abattoir is built on the water table to the whole of the Layou valley. What a total waste of money and danger to the environment! Unbelievable!
Give it a chance Comrade; at least think positive. This is happening in your country after all. If it fails give constructive advise as it relates to how it can get back on it’s feet again since an investment was made in the first place. We need to begin to lend support to initiatives with the potential to jump start some kind of economic movement. This is OUR country to build!
Official, I agree with you, however, the location is wrong and if there is any leakage it will affect the Layou river! Also there truly are not farms that can sustain the daily slaughtering. I want and would love it to work of course. You know the logistics are wrong! You also know that the conditions of the roads to the abattoir are totally appalling. One Love!
Chicken, pork and what else? This administration can do nothing right.
Comrade, if I have to pay more for my chicken because the govt. insist we must buy local that does not make sense to me. If they can make local chicken cheaper than import I will buy it but I’m not going to subsidize local farmers’ profit on which they do not pay tax in the first place. Look at Cuba, Venezuela and the old soviet republic comrade. When government start interfering with business quality goes down, supplies go down, people go short and black market go up. That is real life, not ideology.
DNO is it April 2016 or 2017?
Ok Mr. John-Dont- Know, I hear you. I guess we will all be eating “very tender, beaten and broken” meat from the abattoir by April. Three, freaking years in the making…wow! Imagine that! But I guess we Dcans like it so.:twisted:
Always Assertive!
How many times have we heard this before? I wonder what the next excuse is going to be?
Sorry, but I am not going to buy any meat produced by that facility. Food processing is very critical, particularly fresh meat and I am not convinced the required expertise and controls are in place to guarantee that there will be no contamination. I would prefer to go without meat.
Best you do that!
You sure that’s the real reason you choose to be so negative?