Economic Feasibility of Import Substitution of Livestock Feed in the Caribbean Community

摘要

Widespread use of import substitution (replacing imported with domestic goods) in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) makes CARICOM an ideal focus for evaluating the viability of this strategy. This study examines the economic feasibility of import substitution for livestock feed (corn and soya) in CARICOM, with emphasis on the associated costs and implications for land and labor use, sugar production and exports, and foreign exchange balance. Two major conclusions are reached. First, had a corn/soya industry existed in 1975 under a free trade regime, CARICOM corn imports could have been reduced 45%, soya meal imports 46%, and soya oil imports 34%. Secondly, CARICOM land and labor resources are adequate to achieve self-sufficiency in either feed (corn and soya meal) or soya oil, but not in both.