Fiji imports around $20 million of vegetables such as broccoli, capsicum, cauliflower, cucumber, lettuce, and tomatoes annually due to inconsistency in supply throughout the year.
This was highlighted by the Permanent Secretary for Agriculture, Vinesh Kumar, while opening the two-day training of trainers workshop on Protected Cropping for Ministry of Agriculture staff at the Radisson Blu Resort in Nadi yesterday.
"It contributes to an increase in imports of certain vegetables to service high-end supermarkets and the hotel industry. All these vegetables can successfully grow in Fiji under protected cropping,” Kumar said.
He explained that in protected cropping, crops can be grown under structures throughout the year that otherwise couldn't be grown in an open field.
Almost 90 per cent of farmers in Fiji grow their crops in an open field and as a result, face a lot of difficulties in producing good quality crops during the rainy season.
"Protected cropping or plastic houses provide a great option for the farmers to adopt in order to improve their farm productivity through practising an all-year-round crop production system,” Kumar added.
He said that the effective use of protective structures is well known worldwide as a production system for high-quality vegetable production increased crop yield and quality by altering environmental factors such as light, temperature, air humidity, and pest & wind pressure.
Further, the Permanent Secretary said that the advantages of using protected cropping were: an increase in crop yield, produce quality and revenue, high water productivity, significant reduction in the use of pesticides, and year-round production, allowing farming to take advantage of market seasonality and higher prices.
“The training, which is for technical officers of the Ministry of Agriculture and is an integral part of the work to build internal capacity and improve knowledge,” Kumar said.
The training was funded through the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) and the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC).