Fiji - Agricultural SectorFiji - Agricultural Sector

This is a best prospect industry sector for this country.  Includes a market overview and trade data.

Overview

The agriculture sector remains important to Fiji’s economy for income generation and food security.  Accounting for seven percent of Fiji’s GDP, the sector supports the livelihoods of 27 percent of Fiji’s population, and is the main source of work for more than 83 percent of Fiji’s rural population.  Sugar is the third largest export commodity, but the industry’s performance and production continues to decline.  The Fiji government is focused on increasing the non-sugar subsector’s performance. 
The government’s “Fiji 2020 Agriculture Sector Policy Agenda” aims to drive transformation of the sector to commercial scale agriculture, and to raise non-sugar exports by FJD $100 million (USD $46.2 million) in 2020. Major non-sugar agricultural exports include kava, fruit (papaya, pineapple, and mango) and vegetables including root crops (dalo, cassava, yams).  While most fruit and vegetables are sold fresh, there are a few establishments engaged in processing local fruits and vegetables, mainly for the domestic market, and in producing fruit juice concentrates (pineapple, orange, guava, mango, passion fruit, and other citrus fruit juices).  A small but growing volume of high quality niche agricultural commodities, including certified organic coconut and ginger products, chocolate, and kava is also exported.

The Fiji government is collaborating with development partners to increase linkages between the agriculture and tourism sectors, and to maximize benefits to local farmers and the economy.  In 2017, food imports contributed 16 percent of Fiji’s total imports.  Fiji is dependent on imported produce to meet the tourism sector’s demand of fresh fruit and vegetables, meat, seafood and dairy products.  Recent studies show that the tourism sector imported 52 percent of its fresh produce needs in 2107, with an estimated 74 percent attributed to imports of meats, seafood, and dairy products.

Table 2: Fiji Agricultural Exports
 

Leading Sub-Sectors

Potential commodities in the agro-processing sector for value-added and niche-market processing include fresh fruits such as papaya, tomatoes, pineapple, coconut, duruka (Saccharum edule), guava, and mango; vegetables; and herbal kava products. 
Potential also exists for snack food processing of readily-available taro, tapioca, breadfruit, and banana.  As fruits and vegetables are seasonal crops, processing facilities will need to have flexibility to allow the processing of multiple items to utilize the same plant throughout the year.  There is also potential to increase local production of fresh fruit and vegetable to meet the tourism sector’s demands.  In addition, there is potential to sell food processing and pasteurization equipment to food product manufacturers.

Investment, equipment, improved farming techniques, and supplies needed to expand quantities, meet quality demands, and support these industries are in demand.  The sector also faces a number of challenges including natural disasters, inadequate infrastructure, and high transportation and input costs.
 

Web Resources

Investment Fiji
Ministry of Agriculture