SPC helps region sell produce abroad

BREADFRUIT chips from Samoa, coffee from Papua New Guinea, crystallised ginger from Fiji, squash from Tonga, cassava flour from Vanuatu, pandanus juice from the Marshall Islands and cocoa from the Solomon Islands.
These  are just some of products that Pacific island farmers and entrepreneurs are supplying to export markets, with assistance from the European Union-funded Facilitating Agricultural Commodity Trade (FACT) pilot project, which began in May 2008.
Implemented by an eight-member team based at the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) in Nabua, Fiji and Honiara, Solomon Islands, the FACT project is led by agri-forestry export specialist and FACT project team Leader Dr Lex Thomson.
On a larger scale, thanks to FACT assistance, farmers from Tonga export fruit and vegetables to New Zealand; spices and essential oils from PNG are exported to Fiji, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom; and some of Fiji’s root crops, vegetables and ginger find their way to Australia, New Zealand, France and the United States of America.
“In this way, the livelihoods of Pacific Islanders and small, private-sector exporters are being improved,” said Apiame Cegumalua, a member of the FACT team who is the export processing officer in the land resources division of the SPC.
Cegumalua explains: “The FACT pilot project arose out of the desire of Pacific governments to increase trade in agricultural and forestry products.
“This was seen as a way to help reduce trade deficits, assist in poverty reduction in rural areas and curb urban drift.
“The FACT team is passionate about the work we undertake in the region to support farmers, rural dwellers, and small commercial operators to become export-oriented and market-driven, able to supply overseas markets consistently with competitive agricultural and forestry products.
“Part of FACT support includes assistance with ensuring that the produce meets international market requirements and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), and has good quality packaging and label designs,’ Cegumalua added. 
“The team has worked extensively at the community and industry level, holding training workshops for process operators and building capacity for farmers and small business entrepreneurs.