Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
um price, has opened markets in Australia, Germany, New Zealand and the USA. To
facilitate coconut production and export, the Pure Coconut Oil Company was estab-
lished in 1990 to encourage the seting up of micro-production plants using 'direct
micro-expelling tehnology' to provide cold-pressed oil from dry coconut meal. In
1996, five villages on the two main islands were operating as coconut oil production
centres. The majority of this production is sold directly to the Body Shop (UK) for
hygiene and cosmetic products. In addition, efforts have been made to secure Fair
Trade registration. Other organically certified crops that are exported include bana-
nas, coconuts, cocoa, nano juice and ginger. To date, 200 farms have been organically
certified (out of 14,800 economically active households), 100 are being processed and
200 are on the waiting list, indicating the growing popularity of this approah. In
terms of the future, the organization is working with parallel groups in Tonga, Fiji
and Niue to pool resources and reduce risk through having a regional approah.
Like other Pacific SIDS, agriculture in Samoa has been a crucial source of rev-
enue (banana, copra) and frustration (cyclones, infestations, distance). As econom-
ic trade agreements - vestiges of old colonial trade routes - fade away, Pacific
SIDS must adapt and recognize constraints and opportunities brought by economic
globalization and climate hange. In Samoa, opportunities exist in innovations in
nihe market products (virgin coconut oil) and biofuels experimentation. he con-
straints include mitigating the impacts of global warming on agri-based industries,
where a regional approah to ensure supply of key resources seeks to minimize risk.
However, developing new industries takes time, while population growth, urbaniza-
tion and limited job prospects place immediate demands - none more pressing than
a varied, nutritious and affordable food supply. Government, non-governmental and
community-based organizations continue to promote the importance of local food
production for sustenance and urban markets. It may be that Samoa's geographic
isolation, in addition to its social and cultural integrity (including land tenure sys-
tems), whih is widely aknowledged as unique among the Paciic island states, has
effectively maintained the enduring role that rural and urban food production plays
in providing low-cost food, including culturally important staple crops. In the fol-
lowing section, the development of UPA in Fiji, an economic driver among the Pacif-
ic SIDS, is following a path similar to many African countries. Poverty and squatter
setlement expansion in Fiji is highest amongst South Pacific SIDS. At the level of
local government, UPA is recognized as a legitimate component of a wider strategy
for poverty alleviation, nutrition and food security.
