Antigua partners with Guyana to lower food costs

Antigua and Barbuda has reached an agreement with Guyana on a new food import initiative that officials say is designed to ease the cost of living by bringing in cheaper fruits, vegetables, and other produce for the local market.

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“The aim is to secure cheaper fruits and vegetables and other food items at a cheaper rate. We should see some further reduction in prices once this strategy is implemented,” said Maurice Merchant, the government’s director general of communications. He noted that Cabinet has instructed Agriculture Minister Anthony Smith Jr to work with his Guyanese counterpart to advance the arrangement.

Merchant said the move follows discussions between Prime Minister Gaston Browne and Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali during the ongoing COP30 conference in Brazil.

At its weekly meeting, Cabinet also agreed to reduce the Common External Tariff (CET) on essential food items, including fresh produce, canned proteins, and infant foods. The government recalled that in July 2025, the Caricom Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) approved Antigua and Barbuda’s request to suspend the CET on a range of basic commodities, allowing for a zero per cent duty from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026.

“This measure is intended to cushion the impact of rising global food prices and ensure that Antiguan and Barbudan households continue to have access to affordable staple foods,” the Cabinet statement said.

Nearly 90 per cent of Antigua and Barbuda’s food imports come from North America, leaving local prices exposed to international market fluctuations. Officials say the partnership with Guyana is intended to diversify the country’s suppliers within Caricom and ensure that consumers directly benefit from reduced import costs. If logistics proceed on schedule, the first shipments could arrive in early 2026.

The agreement is also seen as part of efforts to advance Caricom’s “25 by 2025” goal, which aims to reduce the region’s food import bill by 25 per cent while strengthening agricultural cooperation across the 15-member bloc.

Meanwhile, the government says it plans to introduce new legislation next year aimed at curbing consumption of sugary drinks as part of a broader push to promote healthier lifestyles and reduce diet-related illnesses.

“Government is not only on a drive to reduce prices but also to ensure that we develop in our people the need to eat healthy. Sugar is the demon of all foods,” Merchant said, noting that the bill targeting sugary beverages is expected to go before Parliament in the first quarter of 2026.

He added that the upcoming legislation will form part of a wider health policy framework that complements recent food price measures and seeks to shift consumer habits toward better nutrition.