US$10 million Red Stripe’s Project Grow for African Exports – 2,400 Cassava Farmers for Beer, Bread, Wine and HFCS from Sorghum in Five years

Red Stripe use of Cassava (Manihot esculenta) is apparently working out well for them.

This as they’ve decided to invest an additional US$10 million over the next five (5) years in Cassava (Manihot esculenta) production as stated in “Red Stripe to invest US$10 million over 5 years”, published Monday, October 13, 2014, The Jamaica Observer. 

Red Stripe’s investment is to ensure a continuous supply of the root tuber, which is used as a replacement or imported Hops from Barley and Wheat and HMCS (High Maltose Corn Syrup) and HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup) as noted in the article “Red Stripe to invest US$10 in Cassava for Beer production”, published Thursday, October 09, 2014 3:57 PM, The Jamaica Observer.

This will result in significant cost reduction, as these imported inputs into making Red strip Beer and other brewed products, are replaced by Cassava (Manihot esculenta) without sacrificing taste contribute the following percentages to their Importation Bill:

1.      40% HFCS

2.      60% Hops from Barley and Wheat

Folks, this is a really big deal that attracted the attention of the GOJ (Government of Jamaica) with none other than the Prime Minister of Jamaica Portia.

Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Anthony Hylton being present at a tour of the Red Stripe’s Spanish Town Facilities on Wednesday October 8^th 2014 as per the report by the Horses' Mouth, The Jamaica Information Service in their article “Red Stripe to Invest US$10 Million Over Five Years”, published October 9, 2014 By Athaliah Reynolds-Baker, The Jamaica Information Service, suggests that this is  huge deal, as it’ll generate a lot of employment.

Even more exciting, they’re planning to export Red Stripe Beer to Ethiopia and Ghana, where Reggae music is particularly potent and strongly associated with their Brand as noted in the article “Red Stripe to enter Africa”, published Wednesday, October 15, 2014 BY TERRON DEWAR Business reporter, The Jamaica Observer.

It sorta explains why Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Anthony Hylton is present and not the Acting Minister of Agriculture, Derrick Kellier? Still, that level of investment suggests something else was at play during that tour of Red Stripe’s Facilities!

Red Stripe’s Project Grow – Training some 2,400 Cassava Farmers to Grow Cassava over the next Five years

Project Grow was formed originally via a partnership with the Agro-Investment Corporation to lease 36 acres (14.6 hectares) of land at Bernard Lodge in St Catherine to grow the first crop of Cassava (Manihot esculenta) as mentioned in my blog article entitled “Red Stripe and Agro-Investment Corporation signs lease Agreement on 36 acres of Land - Farmers benefit from Cassava’s Day in the Sun as we catch up with Africa's by September 2014”.

Cassava (Manihot esculenta) from this 36 acres (14.6 hectares) plot managed by Dr. Nickeisha T.P. Reid, who Red Stripe hired as their Farm Manager was for the first production of Red Stripe in September 2014, which originally made its debut in Red Stripe's very successful inaugural Red Stripe Beer Festival as declared in my blog article entitled “Red Stripe Beer Festival in the Middle of May 2014 a success – Beer Festival an Annual Event to stave off Sweet Palcohol”.

This Red Stripe Beer Festival, aside from securing their market against the powdered competition from Palcohol, also served their purpose of introducing new Flavours of Red Stripe to the market as well as the introduction of their 1 liter Red Stripe Beer and Guinness Brands as stated in my blog article entitled “Red Stripe Beer Festival in the Middle of May 2014 a success – Beer Festival an Annual Event to stave off Sweet Palcohol”.

That one month Feasibility study that started in January 2014 and ended in February 2014 2013 as stated in “Red Stripe cassava feasibility study ends in Feb”, published Wednesday, January 30, 2013, The Jamaica Observer.  It has apparently worked out well, as with this investment, they're now moving ahead with an expansion of Project Grow to encompass the Farmers of Jamaica in growing the Cassava (Manihot esculenta) they need!

Red Stripe has since begun training some 36 Farmers since Monday September 1^st 2014 in a twelve (12) week training Program on Cassava (Manihot esculenta) production using training material provided by CARDI (Caribbean Agricultural Research  and Development Institute) and delivered by the HEART Trust/NTA  as stated in the article “Red Stripe to train, employ 2,400 for Cassava project”, published Wednesday, September 17, 2014, The Jamaica Observer. 

The current 36 students enrolled in the HEART Trust/NTA 12 week training Program will be given a daily stipend of JA$1, 500. They’re expected learn the rudiments of Cassava (Manihot esculenta) production as detailed in the CARDI (Caribbean Agricultural Research & Development Institute) Pdf document UNDERSTANDING THE CASSAVA (MANIHOT ESCULENTA)  PLANT-ITS GROWTH, DEVELOPMENT, PHYSIOLOGY AND TUBERIZATION PROCESS and then graduate after passing HEART/NTA final exam in November 2014.

Their training represents an investment of some JA$10 million under Red Stripe's Project Grow, so they BETTER graduate, as it'll set the stage for some three hundred (300) persons to be trained over the next financial year 2015 with the aim to train and employ some 2,400 persons under Project Grow over the next five(5) years.

Red Stripe’s overall investment, aside from training, however, is US$10 million over the next five (5) years, that's a lot of Cassava (Manihot esculenta) and Sorghum under Project Grow!  Sorghum? That I’ll explain as well as I go along!

Cassava and Sorghum under Project Grow - Cassava Bread and Wine and HFCS from Sorghum 

This is beginning to look more like an expansion beyond that initial 36 acres (14.6 hectares) that employed some 40 persons employed.

They may really be ramping up to some 7000 acres (2832.8 hectares) over the next five (5) years and may end up employing thousands more according to their plans as mentioned back in January 2014 as mentioned in my blog article entitled “Red Stripe and Agro-Investment Corporation signs lease Agreement on 36 acres of Land - Farmers benefit from Cassava’s Day in the Sun as we catch up with Africa's by September 2014”.  

The plans is to increase production not only in terms of acreage but also production efficiency, from the current 10 to 15 tonnes per hectare to 60 tonnes per hectare so as to displace import of Cassava (Manihot esculenta) from Diageo’s, Red Stripe's parent and SABMiller counterparts in Africa, Brazil and the Philippines.

This 7000 acres (2832.8 hectares) with a production efficiency of 60 tonnes per hectare would result in some 420,000 cassavas per annum, based on the twelve (12) month growth cycle of the Cassava (Manihot esculenta)  Plant as gleaned from the CARDI (Caribbean Agricultural Research & Development Institute) Pdf document UNDERSTANDING THE CASSAVA (MANIHOT ESCULENTA)  PLANT-ITS GROWTH, DEVELOPMENT, PHYSIOLOGY AND TUBERIZATION PROCESS .

At that level of production over a twelve (12) month period, Red Stripe would effectively be mobilizing a estimated workforce, based on my calculations in next three to five (3) years:

1.      2,600 Cassava Farmers islandwide directly

2.      3,750 Cassava Farm Workers indirectly

3.      300 Acres under cultivation initially

4.      2,400 Acres under cultivation in three to five (3 to 5) Years

Already they’re’ on target, having spent some US$1 million (J$112 million) on a 300 acre (121.4 hectares) Cassava farm and processing plant in October 2014 as stated in the article “Red Stripe pours US$1m into 300-acre cassava farm, processing plant”, published Wednesday, October 08, 2014 BY STEVEN JACKSON Business Observer staff reporter, The Jamaica Observer.

That economy-of-scale would replace some 20% of imports by 2016 once all the Jamaican farmers in that huge collective of 7,000 hectares are managed properly. However, US$10 million sounds more like something export-related being in the works, especially as the Prime Minister of Jamaica Portia Simpson Miller and Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Anthony Hylton were present at the tour of the Red Stripe Spanish Town Facilities.

It looks like they may be pursing into export of VAS (Value Added Services) products from

Cassava (Manihot esculenta) over the next five (5) years, specifically:

1.      Cassava Flour

2.      Cassava Biscuits e.g. Chips

3.      Cassava Wine

4.      Cassava Beer, very big in Africa

Red Stripe Cassava Beer and Red Stripe Cassava Wine sounds more feasible as it naturally fits with their Brewed products line, with the Flour and Biscuits being produced by a third party company, possibly CPJ (Caribbean Producer Jamaica). 

Already Research with practical applications is well advanced at the UWI (University of the West Indies), who’ve already demonstrated its feasibility as noted in the article “UWI Science Team Makes Bread From Cassava Flour”, Published Saturday January 25, 2014, The Jamaica Gleaner.

Red Stripe may also use some of that acreage to grow Sorghum to make Sugar that they can convert using enzymes into HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup) and HMCS (High Maltose Corn Syrup) to replace their need for imported HFCS and HMCS. That is, if they also decided to introduce the growing and production of Sorghum in Jamaica.

According to the article “Sorghum - Planting information”, viewed October 17 2014 by Lindsworth Deer, Queensland Government Department of Agriculture , Fisheries and Forestry , Sorghum takes approximately two (2) months to reach full maturity and is best Planted in September or January. 

Since September 2014 is gone, is it a case that we might hear an announcement for Sorghum in January 2015 for a feasibility study to grow Sorghum in Jamaica? With this US$10 million investment under Project Grow and exports to Africa on the Horizon, it may be possible!

UNDERSTANDING THE CASSAVA (MANIHOT ESCULENTA)  PLANT-ITS GROWTH, DEVELOPMENT, PHYSIOLOGY AND TUBERIZATION PROCESS