Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre has promised aid to Simply Mushrooms, a local company based in Babonneau that is on the verge of closing.
Last week the company disclosed that its last harvest would have been on February 3, 2023.
“After the pressures of COVID and losing two of our long-term staff to gun violence, we no longer have the skills base to continue,” Simply Mushrooms stated.
However, it said there was no link between the gun violence in September last year and the company.
The high cost of electricity due to the global energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine compounded the company’s challenges.
“Our yields have gone down. Our profitability has gone down, so we have been losing money since last September,” Co-Founder Peter Dillon told HTS Evening News last week.
Dillon said the company could either raise cash for solar equipment to reduce the bills and get money to train staff to the level where Simply Mushrooms can again be profitable or close shop.
He said at a community meeting, Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre gave the personal assurance that grant funding would be made available.
Dillon explained that time is against the company and the longer it takes to get funding, the more difficult it would be to recommence operations.
He disclosed that the company hoped to have funding within the next two weeks.
At the height of its operations before the COVID-19 pandemic and with about fifteen staff members the company described as ‘vulnerable youth’, Simply Mushrooms sold an estimated 2,000 pounds of mushrooms a week to various buyers.
hmm this place need proper management
And what about the other struggling businesses not owned by foreigners.
What aid do they get Mr.Pierre???
Just asking for a friend
Good! Glad to see the government listen to concerns of the public for once
Aid to this business is important because mushrooms are very important. Hope this can go far towards the youth economy
I really don’t want this business to fail, as it is so refreshing getting reasonable, high quality mushrooms locally. I just can’t understand how they are failing, when their products never stay on the shelves? It is usually done within a couple days if not the same day. Poor management? How? They are the only persons supplying such a product here.