BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC) – The head of the West Indies Rum and Spirits Producers Association (WIRSPA) is calling on Caribbean governments to do more to protect the product, in the face of increasing competition from heavily subsidised spirits on the international market.

“The biggest challenge at the moment continues to be an uneven playing field, in that other spirits, not just rum, benefit from subsidies of one kind or another, and the CARIFORUM rum industry does not,” said Dr Frank Ward, following the launch of a special commemorative XO cask-strength limited edition by Mount Gay Distilleries, in honour of the island’s 50th anniversary of independence.

He said the Caribbean has been placed at a disadvantage after subsidies were granted to rum companies in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands under the Rum Cover Over programme, which provides budgetary support to territorial governments.

Ward said the region has been forced to make painful adjustments to remain afloat, while at the same time reducing the impact on the local workforce.

“Because with a decline in profitability one of the first things to seek to do is to reduce the workforce. Companies have sought in many ways to maintain their existing staff in the face of such competition, so they are to be commended.”

Ward said that WIRSPA brought its concerns to regional governments about six years ago, “but we’ve not been able to effect a satisfactory resolution for our products”.

He added that WIRSPA has been holding frequent dialogue with organisations outside the Caribbean, including the European Commission, to highlight the plight of the industry.

“We recognise that the rum industry as a whole is very export-oriented, and any external shocks would be quite devastating to the industry.

“So we’ve always been outward-looking, and we’ve always been very, very mindful of the fact that things can come up unawares, so one has always got to be vigilant and have a reasonably secure and effective monitoring system to be able to detect threats at a very early stage,” he added.

Earlier, Prime Minister Freundel Stuart told the launch that while the subsidy has contributed to a decline in exports to these US territories, “this industry is determined to show its ability to adapt and maintain its place in the markets of the world”.

He said government has announced plans to launch a rum expansion programme, which is aimed at converting a significant amount of bulk rum to the branded product, and expanding the market share of the local brands in the hospitality sector.

“The expansion programme consists of three components: the Geographic Federation of Barbados rums supported by a Barbados Rum Marque; the development of a strategic repositioning of the industry to incrementally convert bulk rum to primarily branded rum; and an ongoing promotional campaign in the tourism sector to secure Barbados rum brands as a spirit of choice across hotels and bars,” Stuart said.

He also stressed that Barbados and the region must forge ahead to retain their position as world-renowned producers of rum.