AgriBusiness

SECTORS: AGRIBUSINESS

Suriname: a land of sustainability

Suriname relies on a strong agricultural tradition and development. As a consequence, The Government is focused on the development of agribusiness based on the optimal use of natural resources through 3 central strategies:

Expansion

Fostering the expansion of cultivation within previously abandoned agricultural areas, so as not to harm the surrounding natural forests.

Protect

Adopting environmentally-friendly cultivation methods, in order to protect the surrounding natural ecology.

Preservation

Defining the coastal strip as a shield for the entire coastal plain of Suriname against the penetration of seawater, particularly through the preservation of mangrove forests.

INVEST IN SURINAME: WHY TO INVEST?

Competitive advantage of Suriname

Plentiful of available landmass and vast array of fertile land for agriculture: 1.5 million hectares (85% located in coastal plans and 15% on the river terraces in the interior) are considered suitable for agricultural production but only an estimated 120.000 hectares are currently being used .


Availability of freshwater: 99 billion cubic meters of renewable internal freshwater resources in the country (2017)

Favorable climate:

  • Type: tropical climate with abundant rainfall, uniform temperature, and high humidity, influenced by the behavior of the Inter Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ).
  • Average temperature: 27ºC. Sun is rarely entirely absent, providing an average radiation of 450 watt/m.
  • Seasons: Two rainy and two dry seasons, a long rainy season from April to August, a long dry season from August to December, a short rainy season from December to February and a short dry season from February to April.
  • Rainfall: between 1500mm and 2500mm in each year. Suriname’s coastal zone is very fertile.


No natural disasters: placed outside the Hurricane Alley

Exceptional location: due to its strategic location, Suriname acts as a bridge between the Atlantic coastlines, as well as within the Caribbean region.

Key Trade agreements: Suriname enjoy preferential access to:

  • CARICOM: duty and quota-free access to the 15 member countries protected by a common external tariff
  • EUROPEAN UNION: after the EU-CARIFORUM EPA, there is duty and quota-free access to the EU market in all fruits and vegetables products.


Total value of exports has more than doubled between 2012 and 2018 .

Supported skills development: existence of scientific and nature-based educational programs such as:

  • the Het Natuurtechnisch Instituut trainin programs
  • the Anton de Kom Universiteit van Suriname : Studies on Agricultural Production
  • the Polytechnic College Suriname: Studies in Agronomic and Agribusiness Management; Food technology; and Agronomy.
SECTORS: AGRIBUSINESS

Main agricultural productions

Rice:

  • Most important agricultural crop in Suriname it occupies most of the area currently under cultivation, especially in the western coastal districts
  • Mainly destined for exports, being the most important agricultural export in terms of value: average export of rice between 2016 and 2020 of 26.631 thousand USD/year.
  • Most of it is exported to Jamaica and the European Union, predominantly to Portugal and France .
  • Producers are fairly organized in the Suriname Rice Farmers Association (SPBA), which includes 1.200 rice farmers.

Banana:

  • Suriname’s most important agricultural export product in volume and second in value, after rice.
  • The average export of bananas between 2016 and 2020 is of 11.405 thousand USD/year.
  • Almost all its banana production is exported to Europe, predominantly to France. The shipping containers arrive in the Port of Antwerp to be transported further on in Europe.

Fruits :

  • Large new development of citrus, mainly limes, oranges and grapefruit, and other fruits that attract interest such as podosiri or acai, papaya, mango and ineapple.
  • The berries of the podosiri (acai) palm, which grows wild in Suriname, are considered one of the top “superfoods” due to their antioxidant properties and presumed health benefits
  • Good market export prospects in Europe and the Caribbean (especially given preferential tariff margins of 25 to 30 percent for exports to CARICOM).
  • Melon, watermelon, lime and orange have been identified as being possible crops for development.
  • Suriname has the highest export for biological acerola, which has the top biological certification (Demeter).
  •  

Fisheries :

  • The country has a coastline of 380 km – 236 mi and a continental shelf area of 54.550 km2
  • Suriname is a net exporter of fish and fish products, as up to 45 species of fish are caught in the area
  • Fish products and crustaceans generated an average export value of 118.785 thousand USD/year between 2016 and 2020 .
  • Marine fish and frozen shrimp the main export items.
  • Exports are directed to several parts of the world, but mainly to the USA, European Union (especially The Netherlands), China and Japan .
  • The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries has created an internationally certified and recognized fish inspection.
SECTORS: AGRIBUSINESS

Products with future potential

According to the Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA) calculated by the UNCTAD for the country in 2019, Suriname is a competitive producer and exporter of the following products linked to agribusiness:

PRODUCT (group digit and name) RCA
042 Rice9.2
034 Fish fresh (live or dead), chilled or frozen8.9
035 Fish, dried salted or in brine, smoked fish8.4
036 Crustaceans, mollusks and aquatic invertebrates3.9

However, there are further subsectors with a high potential:

  • Cocoa processing industry: The cultivation of cocoa and the related processing industry has recently regained interest after the release of the National Master Plan for Agricultural Development and because for several years, cocoa yields good prices on the global market.
  • Cultivation of biomass for energy and fibre industry: elephant grass, sugarcane, bamboo, jatropha;
  • Citron and other local fruits, with processing industry: The cultivation of modern Brazilian citrus varieties and the processing to juices and jam offer excellent opportunities for the local market and for export.
  • New citrus varieties;
  • Mechanized corn and peanut cultivation, especially in the old coastal plain near the savannahs;
  • New varieties of cooking banana (plantain).
  • Coconut: good possibilities for both the production of coconut oil and fibre products such as coconut water and coconut milk.
  • Aquaculture: fish, shrimp, ornamental fish. There is an important possibility for investment within the sector to improve the value chain, linking it to existent fishing processing ventures, and increase export value from these industries. Studies have indicated that at least 30.000 hectares in the Northern Commewijne area are suitable for cultivation of fish and shrimp.
  • Agro-tourism: Suriname presents considerable opportunities for eco-tourism. As a consequence, there seem to be related possibilities for agro-tourism, encouraging the visit or stay of tourists at farms.
SECTORS: AGRIBUSINESS

4. Support

Suriname Investment and Trade Agency (SITA) is the national Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (TIPA) and is comitted to be the strategic and the trusted partner of anyone who wants to do business in Suriname. Need support? Contact us here.

A. RELEVANT ENTITIES

  • Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries
  • Ministry of Land and Forest Management
  • Ministry of Spatial Planning and Environment
  • Chamber of Commerce and Industry
  • The Suriname Business Forum (SBF) draws its membership from the Suriname Trade and Industry Association, the Manufacturers Association, and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
  • The Suriname Manufacturers Association (Associatie van Surinaamse Fabrikanten ASFA). The association aims to promote the brand “Made in Suriname”. It also provides advice on investing in the country.
  • The Agricultural Platform of Suriname. has been built around existing subsector associations and has succeeded in getting support from all subsectors with the exception of rice. organizations
  • Research entities such as: Centre for Agricultural Research in Suriname (CELOS) and the Anne van Dijk Rice Research Centre (ADRON)
  • The National Institute of Food Safety in Suriname: in charge of safety within food production

B. POLICIES

The National Master Plan for Agricultural Development in Suriname foresees the support of the private sector agricultural activities using direct and indirect financial benefits, especially for new enterprises, such as:

  • Supportive assistance (credit, research & development, extension) towards market and product development. The National Development Bank operates the state-owned Agricultural Credit Fund (Agrarich Krediet Fonds – AKF), established in 2007 to provide low-interest loans to farmers .
  • Insurance and other means to alleviate the uncertainty characteristic of agriculture and mitigate its risk.
  • Special tax incentives to aid growth in the first years of a business and promote stability even in less successful years, including reduced duties on
    the import of agricultural equipment and industrial machinery.

Also, the Ministry plans to set up an international certifying agro-laboratory .

C. AVAILABLE INCENTIVES:

Suriname grants incentives for entrepreneurs related to the activities of agriculture, animal husbandry, fisheries, and aquaculture, who keep regular accounts on their operations (with annual closings) and who, in a year, invest in operating assets intended to be used within the framework of the enterprise.

The specific incentives are:

  • Free write offs: when computing the profit enjoyed in a year for the profit of levying income tax, the amount of the investment (in operating assets) shall be depreciated arbitrarily.
  • Exemption from income tax: The profit enjoyed in the commencement year of an enterprise (and the following 9 years) shall be exempted from income tax if certain requirements are met.
  • Exemption from import duties: the import of capital goods can be partially exempted from import duties, turnover tax and statistics levy if certain conditions are met.
  • Also, business assets used in the agricultural sector that form a whole in connection with the investment (initial investment), are granted an exemption from import duties if the combined value is at least US$ 250,000.00. The condition that the asset must have a value of at least US$ 7.500 does not apply here.

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