Local sugar has lost its sweetness with a decline of 54 percent from 2017, with earnings of just US$14 million to rake in a mere US$6.5 million last year. Replacing Sugar as one of the country’s leading manufacturing products are sauces.
Sauces jumped 55 percent from US$19 million in 2017 to almost $30 million in 2020. It grew just two percent in 2018, over 2017 but in 2019 exports of these spicy items rose 22 percent and by a healthy 24 percent in 2020. At this pace, sauces could be challenging rums and alcoholic beverages before long as the leading manufacturing export items. Breads Biscuits Buns Cakes grew a strong 67 percent from 2017 to 2020 moving from US$15 million to US$25 million. Growth in 2018 was 25 percent over 2017 and 18 percent in 2019 over 2018 and 14 percent in 2020 compared with 2019. Chemicals grew just 15 percent from 2017 to 2020 to reach US$30 million, but it grew 31 percent in 2019 over 2018 and slipped 5 percent in 2020.
Coming tomorrow – Agriculture exports star performers