…see strong potential for value-added growth

Representatives from Wageningen University & Research on Thursday praised Guyana’s agricultural environment, commending the country’s strong Government support, growing youth interest and significant potential for sustainable and value-added agricultural production.

The comments were made during a press conference hosted by the European Union, featuring EU Ambassador to Guyana Luca Pierantoni, Head of Cooperation at the EU Delegation Joan Nadal, and Wageningen University experts Protected Horticulture Specialist Jouke Campen and Agronomist Ria Hulsman.

The press conference discussed findings coming out of a visit to Guyana by a delegation from Wageningen University & Research aimed at creating business-to-business linkages between European and Guyanese companies. The visit places particular emphasis on agriculture and agro-processing, with a focus on advancing value-added agricultural products.

“There is a very strong power and willingness to push the agriculture sector in Guyana. We are very much impressed with the investments that are made, and I believe there is also a huge will of young people to work in this sector, which is very positive,” Hulsman said.

“We are very much impressed by the efforts the Government of Guyana is making, especially regarding fresh fruit production. We are very happy that the delegation of the European Commission invited us to come over and to do a scoping mission in this specific sector.”

The mission included meetings with the agriculture minister and other Government officials, as well as engagements with the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI), visits to the Guyana School of Agriculture, and discussions with other key private-sector stakeholders.

“As a research institute, we believe that we could offer and work together and push together this sector, especially the agribusiness sector, by producing more sustainable food and healthy food,” Hulsman said.

Very impressed

Campen also commended Guyana’s existing institutions and knowledge framework that support the agriculture sector.

“I am very impressed by the knowledge network already here in Guyana. The Guyana School of Agriculture is a really impressive place, where people are stimulated to go into agriculture, which is very important because not a lot of young people are really interested,” Campen said.

“It’s really impressive how it’s being organised already. But there are still challenges, and we are really looking forward to addressing these challenges here together with the institute that is already in place. I think with the proper green system for agriculture, you can really have a tremendous production here in Guyana. I’m really looking forward to the future here in Guyana.”

Nadal explained that the mission is largely focused on identifying opportunities for value-added agro-processing.

“We certainly want to work together in all the areas where you have a lot of value, and we can work closely. Research is certainly a precondition for added-value, high-value agriculture, and this is basically the idea of this mission,” Nadal said.

The visit follows a business mission by Guyanese companies to the European Union in November 2025, during which several countries were visited, including the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Spain.

Ambassador Pierantoni noted that discussions initiated during that mission are continuing.

“Some of the conversations that started during that business mission are continuing, and we are trying to support this as much as possible. During this business mission we also realise that there might be an appetite for other (missions). So for 2026, we’re going to organise perhaps three new business missions, and we are now in discussions with EU member states to identify some other possible itineraries. We will do that working very closely with our Guyanese friends,” he said.

The ambassador also highlighted the importance of phytosanitary standards in expanding Guyana’s access to European markets, with alliances formed being able to bring improvements in this area.

“I think there is a potential for alliances in the sense of having joint processing in a way. But also there is the possibility of improving the standards of certain items and certain products to be given more access to the European market. We have a trade deal that allows us to export without tariffs, but this is just part of an issue. The other issue is the standards, and on that one we have to work together to bring a full system to the market,” he noted.

Hulsman also pointed to the role of research and collaboration in strengthening phytosanitary standards and unlocking Guyana’s production potential. “The institute looks into the standards of countries to see how they can be elevated to comply with the standards of Europe. There is a huge potential for Guyana to enter the market in Europe, but I’m already impressed with how much input is provided for the market itself. It is very, very important to produce healthy food,” Hulsman said.