Cocoa cast as Saint Lucia’s path to diversification

Can cocoa hack it as Saint Lucia’s next big thing in agriculture?

The United Workers Party (UWP) is convinced it can. Party leader Allen Chastanet says cocoa, unlike bananas, offers the resilience and premium potential to drive a revival of the island’s farming sector, positioning Saint Lucia not just as a producer but as a boutique origin for chocolate and artisanal products.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has also highlighted the crop’s potential, suggesting after an August mission that even modest production can sustain niche markets when paired with tourism and local processing.

Yet while cocoa is being cast as the future, the government continues to back the seven‑crop programme launched under Chastanet’s previous administration. Pineapple, cantaloupe, sweet peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, and tomatoes remain part of the initiative, but the Taiwan Technical Mission shifted focus in recent months to a new seedless watermelon variety. This has raised questions about the direction of the diversification programme.  

The Ministry of Agriculture’s website had earlier stated that the second phase of the initiative was set to expand production of soursop, sugar apple, pumpkin, squash, corn, aubergine, dragon fruit, cabbage, courgette and carrot.

The ministry’s deputy permanent secretary declined to provide updated information on the programme at this time, citing heightened political rhetoric ahead of the election.

Minister of Agriculture Alfred Prospere has however acknowledged that the initiative has achieved some success. “I was happy that we reduced imports for the seven-crops programme by 24 per cent but I believe we have to do more,” he told a workshop.

The UWP’s manifesto describes agriculture as a “fallen” sector, characterised by abandoned farms, ageing farmers struggling to access support, and disinterested youth opting out of agriculture.

Prospere agrees that the sector faces serious labour shortages.

“Farmers are saying they are not getting the labour support that once existed,” he said last year. 

“There is a farmer in Soufrière with 30 acres of good agricultural land, but he may have to leave the sector because he needs about 20 workers and is only able to get three or four.”

According to the minister, while some young people express interest, a lack of long-term involvement may be contributing to the labour gap.

The UWP argues the sector has stagnated since it lost the 2021 general election, and promises enhanced investment, subsidies and technological support.

“You’re not really seeing anything taking place. And the diversification to some new crops, there’s been no policy, no plan that’s going on,” Chastanet said in a recent interview with St. Lucia Times.

He has pledged increased backing for the programme if the UWP wins the election.

“My administration has said that we’re going to revive the seven crops… things that we think we can produce on a year-round basis, and give them all the support so that we don’t have to import any one of those products,” he said.

Alongside cocoa, the UWP manifesto briefly highlights honey, herbs and tropical fruits as complementary high-value crops, but the emphasis remains on cocoa as the flagship.

“We believe that cocoa is the next big crop,” Chastanet said. “Because of climate change, every time we have a storm here, 35-mile-per-hour wind, all the banana trees go down. So cocoa is much more hardy, and the roots of cocoa hold our soil very well.”  

Chastanet argues that cocoa production offers Saint Lucia more than just resilience, as it carries economic potential through value‑added processing. He noted that most of the island’s cocoa seeds could be used locally to produce chocolate, creating opportunities beyond raw exports.

“The question,” he said, “is how do we make sure that some of that added value comes back to the farmers?”

Simply paying growers for beans, he added, would not be enough. Chastanet believes cooperatives are key, allowing farmers to share in chocolate production and branding. Such a model, he said, could help get the industry moving while strengthening Saint Lucia’s identity as a small but distinctive origin.

“We are a small destination,” he explained, “and the words we need to apply are ‘premium’, ‘boutique’, and ‘gourmet.’”

The article Cocoa cast as Saint Lucia’s path to diversification is from St. Lucia Times.