The Attorney General and Minister of Agro-Industry and Food Security, Mr Maneesh Gobin, effected a site visit, today, at Crève Coeur to take stock of issues faced by the planters engaged in garlic cultivation. Members of the Parliament, Mrs Subhashnee Luchmun-Roy and Mrs Joanne Tour, and other personalities were also present.

In a statement, Minister Gobin underlined that the major issues identified are poor road infrastructure to access plantation, flooding of plantations, and havoc created by monkeys. He assured the planters that the Ministry will look into the matter and come up with solutions to address these issues at the earliest.

"Garlic is a high-value condiment with an annual consumption of around 2000 tonnes while local production of garlic, amounts to only 50 tonnes annually" he said. The Minister pointed out that in the past few years, garlic cultivation has significantly decreased due to high cost of production and high price of seeds.

In view to boost garlic production, he said that his Ministry will do its best possible to address the problems encountered in a sustainable manner with appropriate support measures. The Agricultural Marketing Board has revised the floor price for purchase from planters of local garlic from Rs 105 to Rs 130 and local garlic seed from Rs 130 to Rs 150, he indicated.

Minister Gobin also emphasised on the need for individual planters to regroup under a cooperative or association so that they can further benefit from machinery and existing schemes that will facilitate their day to day work on fields.