Amid a supply disruption in the global cocoa industry, fueled by extreme weather and crop diseases, a Trinidad and Tobago-based company aims to leverage artificial intelligence to provide Caribbean farmers with tools to help enhance their crop yields and access to financing.

Founder and Director of the Trinidad and Tobago Fine Cocoa Company Limited (TTFCC), Ashley Parasram, who pitched the project at the Climate Smart Summit in Bridgetown on Wednesday, said the firm is currently working with two AI firms to develop the model.

He explained that the initiative seeks to convert years of cocoa research on pests, diseases and production techniques into easy-to-use tools for farmers who often lack direct access to technical information.

“Trinidad and Tobago has decades of research on cocoa, on pests and diseases, on growing yields, on varieties. What we want to do is move from just being in a publication on a piece of paper and getting it in the hands of farmers,” he told Observer Online.

Parasram said this is a model that could eventually be applied in other Caribbean countries, including Jamaica, Grenada, St Lucia and Guyana.

“What you’re going to find is a system that really would empower farmers to be able to understand better how they can reduce the risk, how they can get better yields, and also how they can justify investment to banks and to funders to support more agricultural activity,” he said.

The development specialist said the AI model will be developed through grant funding.

“We will see how the model develops and the mechanism in which we continue to work on it. But I think, given the discussions we’ve had today, there is definitely the opportunity for bringing together different interests in this platform and the use of AI in the region,” he added.

In light of disruptions to global cocoa supplies, Parasram believes the region’s resilience depends on better access to information, stronger data management, and improved preparedness.

“Resilience comes with how we look at information, how we manage that information, how prepared we can be. I think that that is going to be something that will bring a lot of Caribbean countries and I hope Central and South American countries, especially with cocoa, have a lot of qualities into the future,” he shared.

The project comes at a time when the global cocoa industry has faced significant supply disruptions, driven by climate impacts, disease outbreaks and declining yields in major producing countries such as Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana.

Jamaica is one of the 11 countries recognised as producers of fine or flavoured cocoa, and one of the seven exclusive producers of fine or flavoured cocoa.