{
“title”: “Caribbean Logistics Gaps Cloud Guyana’s Food Export Gains”,
“slug”: “caribbean-logistics-guyana-food-exports”,
“category”: “business-markets”,
“excerpt”: “CEDA warns shipping and SPS gaps hurt regional food trade, even as Guyana reports strong agricultural output growth and new CARICOM export plans.”,
“seo_title”: “Caribbean Logistics Gaps Threaten Guyana’s Food Export Growth”,
“body_html”: “

The Caribbean Export Development Agency (CEDA) has warned that high shipping costs, inefficient routing and fragmented sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) systems are undermining the region’s food and agricultural trade. The warning comes as Guyana reports a near 28% rise in production of key agricultural commodities over five years and new plans to fly fresh produce directly to CARICOM markets. The two developments, though separate, point to a widening gap between regional production ambition and the logistics capacity needed to move goods efficiently. AAGENS examines what the reported findings suggest for Guyanese food exporters, without assuming identical conditions apply to every business.

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What CEDA and Regional Officials Reported

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Speaking at the 20th Caribbean Week of Agriculture in Trelawny, Jamaica, CEDA Chief Executive Officer Dr Damie Sinanan described the region’s shipping network as \”thin\” and \”hub-dependent,\” with some cargo routed through Panama, Jamaica or Miami before reaching neighbouring Caribbean markets, according to the Jamaica Gleaner. Sinanan said small shipment volumes mean containers often travel full in one direction and return empty, while exporters still absorb the same freight charges. He also cited limited cold-storage capacity, border friction and climate shocks as ongoing threats to regional food supply chains. In a related account, the Jamaica Observer reported Sinanan noting that ship traffic serving the region had fallen sharply and that agricultural imports have surpassed US$5 billion, a 20% increase since 2022, while regional food exports contracted by 7% in 2025. Jamaica’s Agriculture Minister Floyd Green, addressing the same conference, called for an overhaul of the region’s agricultural transportation system, arguing that food security cannot be achieved if goods cannot move affordably between territories, per the Jamaica Gleaner. Sinanan proposed common regional SPS standards and shared laboratories, packhouses and cold rooms to reduce compliance costs for exporters, particularly smaller businesses.

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What It May Mean for Guyanese Food Businesses

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Guyana’s own agricultural performance stands in contrast to the regional slowdown CEDA describes. Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha reported that production across 15 CARICOM priority commodities rose from 1.41 million tonnes in 2020 to 1.81 million tonnes in 2025, an increase of 27.9%, according to Caribbean National Weekly. Separately, President Irfaan Ali announced plans to begin flying fresh produce from hinterland regions directly into CARICOM states within 12 months, a move intended to shorten farm-to-export timelines, the outlet also reported. At the 127th COTED meeting, Guyana was credited with accounting for more than half of reported CARICOM agricultural output in the first half of 2026, per HGPtv. For Guyanese exporters, this combination of rising output and reported regional logistics strain suggests that production growth alone may not translate into reliable market access. Businesses expanding into sauces, seasonings and agro-processed goods could consider that the shipping and SPS barriers CEDA describes as regional, rather than Guyana-specific, may still affect routing, freight costs and compliance timelines for any shipment leaving Guyana for a CARICOM destination. This is AAGENS analysis of the reported findings, not a confirmed Guyana-specific impact.

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Practical Considerations Before Committing to Regional Trade

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Given the empty-container economics and hub-dependent routing CEDA describes, exporters may wish to plan freight costs on a round-trip basis rather than assuming one-way pricing, and to assess whether consolidating shipments with other producers could offset small-volume penalties. Packaging and shelf-stability choices may also warrant review where goods face longer, multi-leg routes through transshipment hubs rather than direct lanes. Businesses considering SPS certification costs could examine whether group certification or shared testing facilities, as proposed by CEDA, become available regionally before committing to individual compliance spend. Readers assessing broader opportunities in this sector may find useful context in AAGENS’ earlier coverage of production and export opportunities in Guyana and the agriculture and agro-processing investment guidance highlighted by US trade sources. Distributor selection and documentation requirements also merit early attention, particularly for businesses testing diaspora or international markets before scaling inventory commitments.

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Sources: Jamaica Gleaner (5 October 2026); Jamaica Observer (5 October 2026); Jamaica Gleaner (29 September 2026); Caribbean National Weekly; Caribbean National Weekly; HGPtv.

”
}