Farmers recently sharpened their skills as it relates to the cultivation and agro-processing of leaf lettuce, thanks to a workshop hosted by the Taiwan Technical Mission (TTM) in Saint Lucia.

The three-hour workshop was held on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, at the TTM’s Demonstration Farm in Union, where the farmers experienced both the cultivation methods of lettuce and the agro-processing component. The goal was to educate the farmers on proper harvesting techniques of lettuce.

Three varieties of lettuce were used during the workshop, namely Rapid Red, Georgia, and Chris Green.

Mr. Edward Wilson, Production Officer with the Taiwan Technical Mission (TTM) in Saint Lucia, explained that that while these varieties are common in Saint Lucia, there is evidence to suggest that the harvesting techniques employed locally are not up to par.

“We did the training using these varieties of lettuce and also brought in an additional variety,” Mr. Wilson said. “We showed farmers how they can harvest this leaf-type lettuce repeatedly 30 days after the first harvest with the right environmental conditions. We received very good feedback from the farmers, many of whom admitted that they were unaware of these types of lettuce being harvested in that manner. Many of the farmers are used to cutting the entire heads of lettuce instead of simply picking the outermost leaves on a weekly basis.”

The cultivation aspect of the workshop included a hydroponics set-up, where comparisons were made between the on-farm soil production and hydroponics production. By seeing firsthand both production settings, the farmers were able to make some analogies as to where the production advantages and disadvantages are between on-farm soil production and the hydroponics system. The hydroponics project staff members were present, and explained how the system works.

“The cultivation training was aimed at getting farmers to understand lettuce the appropriate way, which was something that was both timely and needed,” Mr. Wilson said. “So we look forward to seeing these varieties of lettuce being harvest properly.”

The agro-processing component of the workshop focused on shredding, weighing and mixing the various leaf colours, which usually helps in presentation, especially when preparing salads. Mr. Wilson said the Chris Green and Red Rapid varieties are favourites with the hotels and restaurants and are used for garnishing dishes.

“Most of us know about the Iceberg-type Lettuce, including Georgia and Eden, which are grown locally,” he explained. “However, over time and the evolution of consumers’ tastes, we’ve had the coloured lettuce coming into Saint Lucia. So we decided to educate farmers through the agro-processing training so that the lettuce’s supermarket shelf life is lengthened.”

Mr. Wilson said one of the objectives for the workshop is that consumers can look forward to a wide array of lettuce when they shop at the supermarket. To that end, Massy Stores are on board, and their Purchasing Manager was also present at the workshop to reassure the farmers that the supermarket chain remains committed to buying their produce once it meets the required standard.

Seeds for the varieties of lettuce are available locally through a distributor, whose representative was also present and interacted with the farmers, explained what seeds are available, as well as affirmed their high quality. She also sought feedback from the farmers and was able to answer the many questions they had regarding the seeds, including meeting farmers’ demands for ready and adequate supply.