Tough Times for Vendors

S Barbados tries to restart its commercial activity, the vendors in Bridgetown continue to struggle with slow sales.

Recently, The Barbados Advocate visited Cheapside Market and the area near Tudor Street and Milk Market Road to chat with vegetable and fruit vendors.

Around 11 a.m. in Cheapside, while vendors’ trays were filled with cucumbers, hot peppers, sweet peppers, carrots, root crops like sweet potatoes and yam, there were few customers buying goods.

Most vendors tried to keep busy as they arranged their fruits and vegetables while others talked to their neighbours. At the Old City Hall, other vendors tried to sell breadfruit and mangoes, which are in abundance.

Produce vendor and store owner on Tudor Street, Keith Walcott, said that it has been challenging, but he is doing the best he can under the current circumstances. He sells an array of cassava, sweet potatoes, and yam as well as watermelon, lettuce, and cucumbers. He also had some mangoes and plantains, which were imported from St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG).

Last month, the Agriculture Minister in SVG, Saboto Caesar, had indicated that the island, although impacted by the La Soufrière eruption, was still able to ship key crops to their neighbouring islands.

Local cashew and wax apple available

One interesting find in the City was the sale of local cashew fruit and wax apple. In Bridgetown, everyone knows that if they want local fruit, there is only one place to go.

Fruit vendor, “Master”, located at the corner of Milk Market Road, had these unusual fruits on sale along with pawee mangoes for a dollar. The cashew fruit is an excellent source of Vitamin C and has several minerals, including copper, calcium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, potassium, and zinc. It is great for curries, fermented vinegar and can be made into an alcoholic drink.

In India and Brazil, it is used in preserves, chutneys, and jams. The strange wax apple is said to have a similar taste to an Asian pear. It can be used in salads and pairs well with onions, garlic, chilies, mint, lemon, fennel, sharp cheeses, and greens, spinach, and romaine lettuce.