The per capital consumption of food and total demand for future years have been arrived
at on the basis of projected income and population growth. The calorie consumption per
capital per day obtained from above show increases during the period 1958 to 1975, from
2,111 to 2,635 for Jamaica, 2,533 to 3,024 for Trinidad and Tobago, 2,040 to 2,445 for
the Leeward Islands, Windward Islands and Barbados and 2,200 to 2,254 for British
Guiana. The protein and fat contents, for Jamaica only, go up from 56 and 34 grams,
respectively, in 1958 to 70 and 47 grams in 1975 (Table 8).

 A summary of the results of our demand projections are shown in Table 1.2. iii.


 Table 1.2. iii

 Projected summary of amounts demanded, all territories

 Commodity 1965 1970 1975
 Million pounds

 Cereals 963 1,112 1,273
 Sugar and preparations 339 391 443
 Roots and starchy vegetables 782 865 955
 Vegetables and pulses 306 358 416
 Fruit 856 1,096 1,269
 Meat 154 185 219
 Fish 159 184 208
 Milk and milk products 285 341 593
 Eggs 39 50 58
 Oils and fats 110 128 149
 Cotton 4 5 6


 Long term projections of supply
 Examining the economic resources of the West Indies, we found that land was likely to
 be the main limiting factor. All regions have a high population density except for the
 island of Dominica and British Guiana; although more land could be brought into use in
 these two places, a rugged topography and poor soils impose limits on possible develop-
 ment in these places where population pressure does not appear to be high.

 Although there can be some substitution between products, we also noted that for many
 crops the type of land, site factors and climate limit the crops that can be grown. Much
 land which can grow bananas is too steep for sugar; much of the acreage under coconut
 production cannot grow other crops, and so on; so that although substitution is possible
 in better land, much land is most suitable for specified crops.

 Although figures of acreage are unreliable, we found considerable increases since 1946
 in areas under export crops, particularly sugar and bananas, for which crop output more
 than doubled. We found however a slowing down of the rate of increase of production after
 1957, and very little growth in output of export crops after that date as compared with the
 earlier periods.