...a Trini Bhaggi Farmer Mr. Ramkissoon gets out of bed at 4am, every morning, six days a week, for 52 weeks a year. For over 30 years, he has worked hard and took no vacation! He has a business to run; a Mr. Ramkissoon family to support; and a vision to fulfill. He is an entrepreneur! Mr. Ramkissoon, of North Trinidad, is a visionary, a farmer and successful agrientrepreneur. He grows dasheen leaves, but he knows that value-adding, 'ready-to-eatfoods', is the way to go! He has a vision! He would like to produce the popular saheenas or 'bhaggi burgers', in frozen form, for the local and exports to niche markets in Europe and North America. promoting a wider appreciation of information and knowledge management for agricultural development generally and specifically, support for the IICA/CTA MEAgrISys project. Bhaggi burger Dasheen leaves #1 of 2007 a collaborative effort of: Naitram Ramnanan CaRAPN member and: Diana Francis Trade Policies and Negotiations Programme IICA Caribbean Region enabled by: Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA –ACP) Dasheen leaves, or callaloo bush, is key ingredient in the national dish callaloo. Because of the high demand for leaves, dasheen is grown mostly under paddy conditions. This cropping system has little international experience and as a result, good quality scientific and other information needed to increase productivity and transform it into a solid and expanding business, has not been generated. There is just no information! As a result, dasheen-leaf producers have had to experiment, learn-by-doing and become innovators. Mr. Ramkissoon has innovated out of necessity. On his small plot, he operates a ‘flooded’ grow box system where the plants and pathways are submerged. This system has greatly facilitated harvesting and maintenance, but is expensive and would probably not be cost effective on a large scale. Sprinkler system The Views expressed herein are not necessarily those of the CTA and IICA