Agriculture service station returning to VG

The Department of Agriculture & Fisheries will be reinstating its Virgin Gorda service station that was destroyed during the September 2017 hurricanes.

Agriculture Minister Dr Natalio Wheatley said the new facility will now operate from a custom-built container.

“A custom-built office trailer is on the island and we expect to provide services to our fishers and farmers on Virgin Gorda from that new location within the coming months,” the minister said.

Dr Wheatley made that statement during last week’s House of Assembly where he gave an update on the state of agriculture in the territory.

He said plans are well underway for the establishment of an Agriculture & Fisheries Marketing Authority that will be established through legislation that is already in the hands of the Office of the Attorney General to draft.

This authority will be responsible for the re-establishment of what was once the BVI Fishing Complex.

“The intention is to repurpose this complex to include agricultural produce and other value-added produce from local farmers and fishers,” Dr Wheatley said.

In another related update, the minister said the Agriculture & Fisheries Department has been partnering with regional and international bodies to “strengthen the department’s capacity for data capture, research and monitoring”.

He did not specify the entities with which the department have partnered or what exactly is being researched and monitored.