PETER CHRISTOPHER
Senior Multimedia Reporter
peter.christopher@guardian.co.tt
President of the Sheep and Goat Farmers Association, Shiraz Khan, is concerned that the increase fines on the production of vinegar and coconut oil is a further blow to micro enterprise in the agriculture sector.
In a telephone interview with Guardian Media yesterday, Khan called the introduction of the fees "petty" and saw it as a further signal of the lack of consideration for agriculture in the country by the government.
"We also face this new thing where farmers are taking their coconuts and making coconut oil. They now want to impose a tax on that. And I find that it's so petty and pathetic in the sense that we pay attention to how we can tax people." said Khan, who noted this approach was concerning, particularly given his criticism of the previous finance minister Colm Imbert for his tax policies.
"We called him Taxbert and tax for potholes. We said all kinds of things. But what we are facing now, as ordinary citizens and farmers and producers of farm products and so on, we are seeing a negativity taking place," said Khan, who said the policy would further stifle small business development in the sector.
Among the proposed amendments in the Finance Bill, 2026 was an increase in the fine for manufacturing vinegar for sale without a licence under the Spirits and Spirit Compounds Act. The penalty, according to the proposed amendment, would see the fine rise from $2,000 to $8,000, a 300 per cent increase.
The bill also proposes doubling the penalty for manufacturing copra products without a licence under the Copra Products Control Act. The fine would rise from $4,000 to $8,000.
"Because we can't see how out-of-the-box people will come up with that thing to register the coconut producers and vinegar to now say that they have to pay taxes and register. I can't see any other justification in doing that, because what you're going to have, what that will force people to do is to stop making it and sell it in an underhand kind of way, "he continued.
He warned that this approach would likely lead to other derivative products from agriculture being targeted next.
"We have a set of small people also producing things like Dahi and ghee and all of that from animal milk because we can't get a good price from Nestle and a subsidy from the government. We may end up facing the same set of taxes that they want to implement on that because once you start with one product, it will go from product to product to product. And I am saying is that if you want to kill your little micro enterprises in the country rather than assist them." said Khan.
Khan, who also raised concerns about the limited efforts to address praedial larceny, said he hoped next Monday's Mid-Year Budget Review would see greater consideration for the sector.
