By KEILE CAMPBELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kcampbell@tribunemedia.net

THE Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources hopes that a buyback programme will help stabilise egg prices and boost local production. 

As egg prices soar, with some stores charging as much as $31.89 per crate, the government is working with local farmers to create a steady supply at more affordable rates.

Under the initiative, the ministry has sourced 1,000 chickens for ten experienced farmers who will sell their eggs back to the government for resale at reduced prices. 

One of the farmers in the programme, Justin Stewart of D&T Nursery, currently has 2,000 laying chickens, producing 70 dozen eggs per day.

However, demand is so high that eggs sell out within an hour. With the ministry’s backing, he plans to expand production to help meet local needs.

“We rarely sell wholesale to the public because our eggs are gone so quickly,” he said yesterday as officials led the press on a tour. “The demand is there, and by working with the ministry, we hope to scale up production to meet it.”

Agriculture Minister Jomo Campbell emphasised the buyback programme’s goal, stating: “The idea will be, through the partnership with the ministry, [that] we will be able to purchase eggs from Mr Stewart, which will be resold to the general public at a very, very reasonable price—much lower than the $6, $7, $13, and $21 we see in the food store.”

The Davis administration has touted its efforts to boot food insecurity and reduce food import costs. In 2023, it launched the Golden Yolk Project, aiming to produce 15 million eggs annually while reducing the country’s reliance on imported eggs.

When he was agriculture minister, Clay Sweeting said in 2023 that the “Golden Yolk will have an immediate national economic impact”.

Darron Pickstock, the chairman of the Bahamas Agricultural and Industrial Corporation (BAIC), said earlier this month that the project is being rolled out in phases and that “locally laid eggs from the pre-launch phase of the Golden Yolk project are anticipated to be on store shelves shortly”.