Post on 28-Dec-2015
Tourism- Agriculture Linkages
•A Working Model of Hotel - Farmer Cooperation - St. Lucia
•
Eustace Vitalis (Sandals Resorts)
TOURISM SECTORTOURISM SECTOR
The tourism industry on the other hand The tourism industry on the other hand has increased its activity significantly over has increased its activity significantly over the years surpassing in GDP contribution the years surpassing in GDP contribution of the once dominating agricultural sector. of the once dominating agricultural sector. In the wider region, the tourist industry In the wider region, the tourist industry forms 31% of GDP, employing over 1 forms 31% of GDP, employing over 1 million people. Investments within the million people. Investments within the industry have been significant and plans industry have been significant and plans are for further investments in a number of are for further investments in a number of OECS countries. OECS countries.
[1] [1] Caribbean Tourism Organization (2005)Caribbean Tourism Organization (2005)
IssuesIssues
• Inappropriate organization in the Inappropriate organization in the sector;sector;
•Reduction in the level of Reduction in the level of financing; andfinancing; and
•Absence of a formalized business Absence of a formalized business approach to agricultural approach to agricultural production and marketing. production and marketing.
ConstraintsConstraints
•Limited knowledge of the market place Limited knowledge of the market place by producers;by producers;
•Limited access to suitable lands, high Limited access to suitable lands, high cost and low productivity of labour, cost and low productivity of labour, inadequate supply of quality planting inadequate supply of quality planting material, infrastructure, etc.;material, infrastructure, etc.;
•Constraints in the air and sea Constraints in the air and sea transportation systems; andtransportation systems; and
•Weak institutional capacity at all levels Weak institutional capacity at all levels within the sector.within the sector.
OpportunitiesOpportunities New and Ongoing InitiativiesNew and Ongoing Initiativies
• Culinary – Food festivals (Fish fries in St. Lucia, Culinary – Food festivals (Fish fries in St. Lucia, Dasheen festival in Dominica)Dasheen festival in Dominica)
• Farm-based tours (eg. Organic farming at Farm-based tours (eg. Organic farming at Exotica, Dominica)Exotica, Dominica)
• Protection and preservation of traditional Protection and preservation of traditional practices and lifestyles – particularly with practices and lifestyles – particularly with indigenous peoplesindigenous peoples
• Herbal usage in spas and by productsHerbal usage in spas and by products• Agro-heritage (eg. Mamiku and Fond Doux in Agro-heritage (eg. Mamiku and Fond Doux in
St. Lucia, Belmont Estate in Grenada, etc)St. Lucia, Belmont Estate in Grenada, etc)• Sharing of experiences between countries of Sharing of experiences between countries of
Latin America and the OECS through farmer’s Latin America and the OECS through farmer’s exchange programmesexchange programmes
• Increase intra-regional tradeIncrease intra-regional trade
ThreatsThreats
• Globalisation and trade liberalizationGlobalisation and trade liberalization• Vagaries of natureVagaries of nature• Insensitive approach by hotel purchasers of Insensitive approach by hotel purchasers of
local producelocal produce• Failure to comply with market requirementsFailure to comply with market requirements• Absence of effective information systems Absence of effective information systems
about needs of market and production about needs of market and production capacitycapacity
• Lack of appropriate policies and an Lack of appropriate policies and an institutional base to nature and sustain institutional base to nature and sustain linkages between the two sectorslinkages between the two sectors
• Absence of appropriate infrastructure (pack Absence of appropriate infrastructure (pack houses, storage facilities, etc.)houses, storage facilities, etc.)
ThreatsThreats -- Continued Continued
• Failure to implement appropriate policiesFailure to implement appropriate policies
• Changing government policiesChanging government policies
• Praedial larcenyPraedial larceny
• Hotels, especially small properties, Hotels, especially small properties, struggling under high cost and fierce struggling under high cost and fierce competitioncompetition
• Regional airlines under threatRegional airlines under threat
• Environmental costs due to undesirable and Environmental costs due to undesirable and unregulated practicesunregulated practices
• Establishing formal relationships between Establishing formal relationships between the agriculture and cruise sector.the agriculture and cruise sector.
SELECTED TOURISM STATISTICS
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 p
TOTAL ARRIVALS 563,632 629,598 621,001 726,254 746,466 648,364 683,005 719,151 719,844 669,154
TOTAL VISTOR ARRIVALS 253,369 257,530 269,768 282,703 256,554 261,184 289,765 309,872 325,480 309,561
STAYOVER/TOURIST ARRIVAL 278,406 252,237 263,793 269,850 250,132 253,463 276,948 298,431 317,939 302,510
NUMBER OF ROOMS AVAILABLE 4,014 4,077 4,125 4,428 4,428 4,428 3,749 3,974 4,556 4,737
NUMBER OF BED-PLACES AVAILABLE 7,546 7,705 7,768 8,236 8,236 8,236 6,748 7,153 8,201 8,681
VISITOR EXPENDITURE (MILLIONS EC$) 766 765 740 752 629 567 762 879 961 768
Source: St. Lucia Tourist Board
STAYOVER/TOURIST ARRIVAL
0
50,000
100,000
150,000
200,000
250,000
300,000
350,000
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 p
YEARS
TO
UR
IST
AR
RIV
AL
S
VISITOR EXPENDITURE (MILLIONS EC$)
0
200
400
600
800
1,000
1,200
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 p
YEARS
MIL
LIO
NS
EC
$
BANANA PRODUCTION (TONNES)
0
10000
20000
30000
40000
50000
60000
70000
80000
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 p
YEARS
TO
NN
ES
BANANA REVENUE FROM UK (EC $MILLION)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 p
YEARS
EC
$ M
ILL
ION
S
Agriculture Tourism LinkagesSaint Lucia (W.I)
Presenter: Eustace Vitalis
SANDALS - LOVE IS ALL YOU NEED
RESORTS IN ST. LUCIA
Name # of Rooms
Sandals Regency Beach & Spa 327
Sandals Grande Beach & Spa 283
Sandals Halcyon 170
TOTAL 780
SANDALS AGRICULTURAL NEEDS (weekly)
FruitsWatermelons 2500 - 3000 lbsCantaloupe 2200 – 2500 lbsHoney dew 2200 – 2500 lbsPineapple 3000 – 3500 lbs
Grapefruits 600 – 800 lbsOranges 800 - 1000 lbsPapaya 300 – 350 lbs
Vegetables
Romaine Lettuce 2200 – 2500 lbsCabbage 600 – 800 lbs
Squash Zucchini 600 – 800 lbsGreen Bell Peppers 540 – 600 lbsYellow Bell Peppers 450 – 500 lbs
Red Bell Peppers 540 – 650 lbsTomatoes 1770 – 2000 lbs
Roots & Tubers
Yams 800 – 1000 lbsDasheen 800 – 1000 lbsSweet Potatoes 900 – 1200 lbs
Sandals Agriculture Programme
Program started in November 2002
Total # of suppliers/farmers -50 +
# of Farmers Organization - 2Over 75% of farmers are women
Activities Undertaken
Training for Purchasing Clerks and Receivers by CARDI & MAFFTopic: Post –harvest Handling of Fruits, Vegetables and Root CropsAreas coveredWhat are fruits, vegetables and root cropsClimacteric vs Non Climacteric fruitsMaturity IndicesComponents of QualityMinimum Quality Standard Requirements for HotelSelectionTransportation and HandlingPackagingStorageFood Safety Issues
Activities Undertaken
Regular Visits to Farms by Chefs and kitchen staffDiscussions with farmers/suppliers on issues of traceabilityPreparation of Project Proposal for funding from the EU – PendingKey Issues of concern:Production SchedulingAgric-Business ManagementDeveloping and updating a Farm PlanRecord-KeepingGood Agricultural Practices/OECS GAPQuality Standards and HACCPCrop Estimating/Forecasting ProductionEstimating Cost of Production
Activities Undertaken
Farmer Appreciation Luncheon (Dec 2003)
Total of over 50 farmers with spouse/partners attended along with Minister of Agriculture, Rep. of Ministry of Tourism and Representatives of key Agricultural Agencies (CARDI. IICA, SLAA, etc).
How a farmer incorporates into the Sandals Agricultural
Programme?
FARMER SHOWS INTEREST IN PROGRAMME
MAFF CERTIFICATION
SANDALS AGRI OFFICER
VISIT TO FARMS
CLEARENCE TO JOIN PROGRAMME
0
10000
20000
30000
40000
50000
60000
QT
Y (
Lb
s)
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
Fruit and Tree Crops
MONTHS
PURCHASES OF FRUIT & TREE CROPS BY SANDALS RESORTS INTERNATIONAL JAN - DEC 2003 - May 2007
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
PURCHASES OF NON TRADITIONAL VEGETABLES BY SANDALS RESORTS INTERNATIONAL JAN - DEC 2003 - May 2007
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
MONTHS
QT
Y(L
BS
)
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007GRAPH 2
0
5000
10000
15000
20000
25000
30000
QT
Y (
LB
S)
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
MONTHS
PURCHASES OF TRADITIONAL VEGETABLES BY SANDALS RESORTS INTERNATIONAL JAN - DEC 2003 - May 2007
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
GRAPH 3
PURCHASES OF CONDIMENTS BY SANDALS RESORTS INTERNATIONAL JAN - DEC 2003 - May 2007
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1600
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
MONTHS
QT
Y (
LB
S)
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 GRAPH 5
PURCHASES OF ROOTS AND TUBERS BY SANDALS RESORTS INTERNATIONAL JAN - DEC 2003 - May 2007
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
12000
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
MONTHS
QT
Y (
LB
S)
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 GRAPH 4
TOTAL QUANTITY OF EGGS PURCHASED BY SANDALS RESORTS INTERNATIONALJAN - DEC 2003 - May 2007
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
12000
14000
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
MONTHS
QT
Y (
LB
S)
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007Graph 7
TOTAL QUANTITY OF SUCKLING PIGS PURCHASED BY SANDALS RESORTS INTERNATIONALJAN - DEC 2003 - May 2007
0.00
100.00
200.00
300.00
400.00
500.00
600.00
700.00
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
MONTHS
QT
Y (
LB
S)
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 Graph 8