FRIDAY, MAY 09, 2025
VOLUME 119, No.19
AIA under strain Page 3
www.thevincentian.com
‘Too Cool’ in court Page 5
OPM spending Page 12
EC$1.50
New Pope elected Page 20
The CBI debate Page 36
Rainforest Seafood SVG Ltd. whose operation is located a stone’s throw from the Calliaqua Fish Market, will in due course feature a retail outlet.
Saboto Caesar, Minister with responsibility for Fisheries, told Parliament that he does not see the Rainforest Retail Outlet as a competitor for the nearby Calliaqua Fish Market. RAINFOREST SEAFOOD SVG LTD., the Jamaica-headquartered company that was granted a plethora of tax exemptions and concessions in return for establishing and operating a fish processing, exportoriented facility here, has been granted permission to operate a retail (fish) facility at its plant at Calliaqua. However, according to Saboto Caesar, Agriculture and Fisheries Minister, in his reply to a question raised by Opposition Member Daniel Cummings during a sitting of Parliament, April 28, Rainforest Seafood SVG Ltd, as of April 28, had neither applied for nor received any additional concessions to those it had
received for the fish processing plant, and that the concessions extended to the company initially, were not extended to the new retail facility. He went on to say that although they had not done so (i.e. applied for additional concessions) they could, and if they did the concessions granted, if any, would be on different terms. Readers will recall that in return for the “incentives” it received, Rainforest Seafood SVG Ltd committed to invest EC$10m in a fish processing facility at a location in Calliaqua, which it would rent from the government at a rate of EC$6,500 a month for 25 years.
In addition, the Jamaican, Sandals-related Stewart family owned company promised to endeavour to purchase up to EC$20 million worth of lobster and fish annually from local fisherfolk, in return for, among other exemptions and concession, the following: * 15-year tax break — i.e. no taxes or withholding of any kind on the company’s income, profits and capital gains; Continued on Page 3.