British businessman Duncan Turnbull has established a 700-acre coconut nursery: Pomeroon Trading Inc, located in the Pomeroon; and with this development, Guyana’s coconut sector is expected to see some major improvements. The estate is, however, under rehabilitation.
The company said on Friday that its central aim is to use technology to improve the local industry, while striving to be the largest plant material supplier in the Pomeroon. Although the main export is coconut water, experiments will be undertaken to utilise other products generated from this process, the company has said. One such initiative is to use the coconut husk for biofuel. There will also be
The newly rehabilitated Pomeroon Trading Nursery
intercropping with turmeric, avocado, moringa, ginger, stevia, passion fruit, and black pepper.
Thirty thousand seedlings have so far been planted, and there are plans to increase this number to 50,000 by next year. The introduction of this enterprise has also aided in providing jobs for 40 persons in the community.
Businessman Duncan Turnbull recently explained that underperformance in the coconut sector is caused by unavailability of seedlings. What was on offer could not revive the industry, so the company is trying to improve what is on offer from a fundamental level.
Turnbull had this to say, “Existing estates are often ageing and unproductive.”
During a recent meeting with Agriculture Minister Noel Holder and the CEO of the
Dr Homenauth on a recent visit to the nursery at Pomeroon
National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI), Dr Oudho Homenauth, Turnbull expressed appreciation for the support his company has receive from NAREI and the Ministry of Agriculture. There was also a discussion on the progress of the rehabilitation being done at the estate, and an update on the progress of the new nursery.
The company is expected to produce crops of high value in Guyana, to facilitate export. Additionally, to begin addressing its corporate social responsibility towards the community, a dining hall has been presented to the Hackney Primary School.
