Bird aims to boost cocoa production

Business

EAST Sepik Governor Allan Bird says 390,000 poly bags will be distributed to help cocoa farmers.
Bird said 10 million cocoa seedlings needed to be planted next year to replace aging cocoa trees.
“We need to plant 10 million seedlings next year to expand capacity so that we can continue to replace our old trees with these high yield clones (seedlings),” he said.
“Our focus will be on cocoa until we fully develop its production capacity. As soon as the European Union’s Support to Rural Entrepreneurship Investment Trade (Streit) programme fully kicks off, then we will try to focus on other crops.”
Bird said it was up to the people to be honest and able to use available resources to empower themselves to improve cocoa yields.
“The challenges faced with agriculture depend on the crop. Each crop has their own challenges starting from the time the seedling is planted all the way to the time it will be harvested.”
Bird said several thousand of people have been trained to be able to produce their own clones (seedlings) and could help supply other farmers as well.
He said after considering all possibilities and challenges faced by farmers, he was positive that cocoa production would expand as long as farmers improved their planting materials and observed good management skills.

2 comments

  • This is a wonderful story from a wise Mr Bird. The world is craving for chocolate and coffee. How wonderful it is to replace all the old coffee and cocoa trees around the country and replanted with new hybrid seedlings as well as covering new unused agricultural fertile lands…imagine the impact on the economy..

  • If Bird leaves NA and forms a new party under his leadership, I will vote for your party. I believe in your style of leadership and the heart you have for your people of ESP and PNG as a whole. NA still have some crooks in there, hence, people won’t vote for NA.

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