THE Jamaica-based CB Group, known largely for its poultry brand, announced that it sent a shipping container of edible eggs to Trinidad & Tobago.

It isaimed at balancing an apparent oversupply of eggs in Jamaica and an under-supply in Trinidad & Tobago, due to the non-supply of eggs from the USA, a release on the matter indicated.

The eggs are valued at roughly J$2 to J$3 million, but serve to “reopen regional export channels”. CB group described the shipment as a win-win situation.

“We understood that our egg market had an oversupply situation and T&T had an under-supply. So we reached out to local players in Trinidad to see if we could help one another and fortunately, we’ve come out with a win-win situation,” stated Matthew Lyn, COO of the CB Group, which produces and sell Grade-A Chippenham Eggs and omega-enriched Smart Eggs.

By exporting the excess, Jamaican farmers should be able to reduce their inventory while still getting a fair price for their eggs. Asked whether he thought this would be an ongoing relationship, Lyn explained that CB was just filling a temporary gap for one country.

“However, as an industry we have the capacity to grow much, much, more and we’re open to working with other farmers to build the capacity we need to offset the large volumes of table eggs that are still imported into the region,” he added.

Last December the local market experienced a major shortage of eggs which resulted in local farmers increasing production, now resulting in an oversupply.

“What we’re seeing is a continuous battle between increasing supply and demand curves. The consumers keep wanting more and more eggs and the industry keeps increasing to meet the growing demand. But it’s hard to predict future demand, so sometimes the farmers produce a little more or less than the demand, and right now it’s a little more,” according to Tina Hamilton, brand manager for Smart Eggs.

CB Group entered the table egg market in 2011 as one of the larger players aiding in the growth of the product.

The Hendrickson family controlled CB Group built vertically integrated poultry, swine and egg operations, with one of the most modern feed mills in the Caribbean. Its operations started in the 1980s when the family, which focused on baking, ventured into agriculture and produce forming what would eventually become the CB Group. It operates a series of brands including CB Chicken, Smart Eggs, Chippenham Eggs, Copperwood Pork, Caribbean Passion, Bad Dawg Sausages and Nutramix Feeds.