Prices of Vegetables and Fruits Go Up 🥑 Possible Solutions

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That we're in a lockdown is one thing, but having vegetable and fruits shortages, which makes the prices go up, is another. But don't worry about us just yet, there is still food in Suriname and I'm doing fine. It's because of the rainy season we're in right now, that a lot of places in Suriname are/were flooded and especially the agricultural areas have been hit hard by it.


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So like I've already said, there's food available. But because the crops aren't doing so well - less vegetables and those that are available are smaller - the prices went up drastically; supply and demand. Fruit and vegetable vendors who are a telephone call away have all said that (part of) their land has been influenced by the flood(s) and the constant rain. Even the tools and/or machinery used by farmers got affected.

And yes, we can't control the weather, even I know that. But after reading a news article I was wondering "What can we control?" I mean, we know already by now that it rains this much every year, so shouldn't we have come up with possible solutions at this time? For instance, finally getting our infrastructure up to par; fixing what's already there and getting systems in place that we didn't have before.

Another possible solution is to modernize. The knowledge in modern agricultural technology (greenhouses, hydroponics, vertical farming, aquaponics, etc.) IS available in Suriname; there are even colleges and courses focused on agriculture, where farmers could learn techniques to control what they can and "ensure" a steady output.

Of course, to utilize all of those techniques it will cost money - a lot - and maybe they don't all have the capital to invest. Still, I'm really wondering if they do invest in more modern ways, if the return would be worthwhile in the long run. But what do you think? Did I miss something? Leave a comment below 🤓.


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11 comments
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Invest in (GMO-free organic) seeds, and start planting yourself.😉

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(Edited)

Hahaha we actually do, but have also been affected by the rain.
We grow for our own use, so no investing in those techniques 🤷‍♀.

!ENGAGE 10

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I used to wonder why certain crops here were grown in green houses but then I realized. Most of them look inexpensive
But who knows. But seeing how they grow rice here is amazing, they have these irrigation systems that uses the rain water and water streams that can flow back into the stream with the turn of a pipe. Rice needs a lot of water. So I guess I’m saying , they could grow what world best in the rainy season at least if the infrastructure is costly in Suriname.

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We do have a huge rice culture (culturally eating it and agriculturally growing it) here in Suriname and are even exporting rice. I should check to which countries we export to though 😅.

Nickerie, the district in the West that borders to Guyana, is our largest rice producing district, where we have micro and macro rice farmers.

The crops that has gotten mostly affected were the green vegetables and fruits. Those farmers should really start investing in modern techniques.

We have an acquaintance whose family has invested in hydroponics for tomatoes, bell peppers and strawberries (berries are still in the testing phase though) and their crops are doing well and the output is "guaranteed"; more than with traditional farming if you ask me. He also told us that he was willing to share his knowledge but found that most farmers were set in their (old) ways, so yeah what more could you do?

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We have few choices here in Clevia for produce, and for nearly a week all we had access to were mangoes and cucumbers. Things are getting tougher and tougher by the day. We spent a week without being able to find propane and no access to funds. We ran down to our last few dollars with nothing to eat and no way to cook.

This is no way to live, and it's even tougher when you don't have a social network of friends and family looking out for you. I think Suriname should import a whole Cambodian village, that would fix the agricultural situation within a year ;).

Even when there is produce, it seems there is little variety here, that is definitely something that needs to change because we're tired of eating the same 10 or 12 vegetables week after week.


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Hahahaha that would be a great idea. A large part of the population is moving away from farming, especially after the abolition o slavery and immigrant parents wanted their kids to become lawyers or doctors. Almost no one wants to work fields anymore. My grandad also had a patch of land at plantation Laarwijk, but he sold it, because none of the kids wanted to farm and be so far away from the city. We've all settled here.

There was even a time in history when the Suriname government had to open up the borders to Haiti citizens, to work the fields.

And about the limited variety; I guess Surinamers have a limited diet 🙈 and some don't like "new" things. For example with my parents, sometimes we ate the same type of vegetables every week; became staples 😅.

But I do think, that in more rural areas there's more variety.

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Do you know of a group, or tag; for aquaponics on here? I am designing a system right now, and want to meet like minds!

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I don't know specifically for aquaponics, but I know of the HiveGarden group that's about gardening and the Stemsocial group that focusses on STEM related topics.

Hope you'll find what you're looking for :)

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Thanks, I know that aquaponics is pretty specialized, but I was hoping....

I'll go look at that group. I appreciate the help!

🤠🌽🤕

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