Severe post-harvest losses in tropical fruit crops do occur as a direct result of post-harvest diseases in the Caribbean. Post-harvest diseases such as anthracnose (Colletotrichum gloeosporioides) and stem end rot or soft rot (Botryodiplodia theobromae) have been responsible for limiting productivity and export quality of produce. The accumulative losses due to these diseases also inhibit development of the fruit sub-sector in the region. Anthracnose, a serious disease on non-traditional export fruits such as mango, papaw and avocado, exhibit the phenomenon of quiescence or latency. On infection the symptoms and development of disease are not seen until the fruit ripens or matures. This type of infection is also found in anthurium in the field. Quiescence is not fully understood hence management strategies for control have proven difficult and/or uneconomical. Stem end rot or soft rot unlike anthracnose is much more easily controlled. Recent sudies show that management strategies for anthracnose should include pre-harvest (i.e. in the field) treatments in combination with those of post-harvest.

This study seeks to detemine whether there are real opportunities for Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member countries to market fresh pineapples in the lucrative Western European market. The trends in world pineapple production and trade are analysed. It concludes that the Western European market for huge quantities of CARICOM-grown fresh pineapples is more a myth than an immediate opportunity, but that Guyana and Belize have some advantages to successfully solicit overseas investors to make the idea a reality.

Breadfruit has been grown in the Caribbean for almost 200 years since the introduction by Bligh in 1973. St. Vincent and Jamaica received the first plants and now this crop is found in all territories within the Eastern Caribbean. It has been used as a carbohydrate source for man and animals and is prepared in many ways - boiling and roasting being the most popular. Other uses include felling the tree for timber and the production of flour from the pulp (Matthews et al., 1986) and confectionery from the male inflorescence. The breadfruit tree seems particularly well adapted to conditions in the Windward Islands, even surviving within 2 years. Although the potential of this crop has been promoted in the past (Leakey, 1977; Ferguson, 1980) it has only recently received wider attention. This is partly so because breadfruit is now viewed as diversification option in the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) where the potential for joint marketing exists. The discussion that follows excludes the less popular seeded form of breadfruit known locally as 'chataigne' or 'breadnut'.