All this week, we've been reporting on the situation in the banana industry - their crops badly damaged by two thunderstorms earlier this week.
The situation is both dire and urgent and the Agriculture Minister, Rene Montero, visited the banana belt yesterday to make his own assessment.
He said it is an urgent situation, but not a crisis:
Hon. Rene Montero - Minister of Agriculture
"The damage that we assessed is something around 5 to - it's very hard to get a figure right now, but an estimation of about 5-10 million dollars that they will need immediately to recover."
Jules Vasquez
"Is this, in your opinion and your estimation of your ministry, a crisis?"
Hon. Rene Montero
"I don't think it's a crisis because most of the bananas that were damaged, the farmers are already harvesting, and are already preparing for export. I think that if we can get our act together, and the line of credit can be created from DFC and the Social Security Board - immediately - I think that within 6 months to 9 months, the banana industry can recover, and continue to export to the level that they were exporting a week ago."
According to Montero, both the DFC and the SSB have today dispatched staff to the banana belt to make their assessments.
We know also that the industry leaders have requested a meeting with the Minister of Finance, Dean Barrow...
