A country story / GD
Grenada
The long life of a spice landscape
Nutmeg and cocoa connect Grenada’s farming communities to a long export history. Replanting after storms brings a difficult timescale: restoring productive trees while maintaining food and income for the seasons in between.
Preparation stage · available acreage not established
01Crops that shaped the country
Nutmeg, cocoa and generations of work
Nutmeg’s place in Grenada was built over generations. A FAO technical history dates its introduction to 1843 and commercial plantations to the 1850s. Nutmeg and mace became important exports, connecting the island’s growers and processors to overseas kitchens. These crops give Grenada a distinctive agricultural history, beyond a general account of Caribbean sugar.[1]
Hurricane Ivan in 2004 exposed how much that economy depended on standing trees. A 2009 FAO study describes severe damage to the nutmeg and cocoa industries and the labour demands of replanting. It also records smallholders growing a wider range of fruits and vegetables and keeping livestock.[2]
02Recovery and everyday livelihoods
A harvest depends on more than planting
The Ministry of Finance’s 2026–2028 fiscal framework records another difficult period after Hurricane Beryl in 2024. Its account of early 2025 links lower nutmeg, mace and cocoa production to the storm and heavy rainfall. It also identifies labour shortages, input costs and limited timely market information among farmers’ constraints.[3]
Recovery reaches across farming and fishing communities. FAO’s July 2024 response described needs for planting material, short-cycle crops, fishing equipment and processing infrastructure in Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Rebuilding livelihoods involved the whole route from production to food and income.[4]
03Where CaribVista could help
Make the years between harvests visible
CaribVista proposes to work with growers and extension specialists on a small demonstration that balances food production with the care of existing tree crops. A locally chosen mix could be tested for labour needs, soil protection and income through the year. No crop combination would be presented as hurricane-proof.
The proposed record would make establishment costs and the wait for harvests visible, alongside food reaching households and earnings reaching farmers. Landholders and current users would shape the site agreement. Field observations, farm accounts and satellite monitoring would then help partners decide whether the approach deserves further investment.
04 / Read the landscape
Put the story beside the map.
With that history in mind, explore Grenada in natural colour, through its vegetation signal and by mapped land cover. These views help frame local questions; the land records and field assessment establish what a specific site can offer.
From the satellite record
See the land.
Read the signal.
Explore the same landscape in natural colour and through its vegetation signal.
Sentinel-2 · January–September 2026
RGB · Natural colourGrenadaCloud-screened median compositesStronger vegetation signals can include forests, pasture and crops. The dark background shows masked water, areas outside the study boundary or missing data.
How to read these images and inspect the sources
Natural colour combines the red, green and blue bands (B4, B3, B2). NDVI compares near-infrared and red reflectance: (B8 − B4) / (B8 + B4). Both views use the same dated scene list and extent, with cloud and shadow screening. Each pixel summarises observations across the period; this is not a single photograph.
The colour scale is fixed across countries; values beyond its endpoints use the endpoint colours. The separate NDVI statistic is the spatial mean of the temporal-median index on the documented 1 km screening grid. Image pixels use the display grid stated above.
These views help guide a closer inspection. They do not identify available rental land, confirm ownership or measure agricultural suitability.
- A temporal median of observations in January–September 2026, not a single-date photograph.
- RGB and NDVI use identical bounds, display grid and valid-pixel masks. Higher NDVI indicates greater spectral greenness, not crop identity, yield, land vacancy or suitability.
- Transparent pixels represent the selected boundary/land mask or missing valid observations, not proof of absent vegetation.
- The overview grid is for display. The published numerical screening uses a separate 1 km grid; do not extract hectares or availability from these coloured pixels.
- Cloud and shadow masking can leave residual haze or remove valid surfaces. Native 10 m source bands do not make the overview a 10 m product.
- Uses pinned geoBoundaries replacement geometry that assigns Carriacou and Petite Martinique to Grenada. This is not legal territorial certification.
- Component islands shown are those represented in the documented boundary; small features can be difficult to distinguish at overview scale.
Download the imagery reproduction package ↓
Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2026), processed for CaribVista.
The 2021 land-cover baseline
What covers the landscape?
Grenada35,014.1 mapped hectaresAll classified pixels in the selected boundary, including water
Explore a class in the chart or legend.
Grassland
1,432.2 haThis class includes managed pasture and natural grassland. It does not identify vacant, idle, leasable or cultivable land.
View the values and boundary notes
| Land-cover class | Hectares | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Tree cover | 31,351.4 | 89.5% |
| Shrubland | 10 | <0.1% |
| Grassland | 1,432.2 | 4.1% |
| Cropland | 31.8 | <0.1% |
| Built-up | 1,558.1 | 4.4% |
| Bare / sparse vegetation | 56.5 | 0.2% |
| Snow and ice | 0 | 0.0% |
| Permanent water | 328.6 | 0.9% |
| Herbaceous wetland | 42.9 | 0.1% |
| Mangroves | 202.4 | 0.6% |
| Moss and lichen | 0 | 0.0% |
| Total mapped area | 35,014.1 | 100% |
Boundary source: geoBoundaries gbOpen. Calculation: 11 October 2026. Rounded values may not add exactly; downloads retain the source values.
- Selected national polygon was matched uniquely; mapped area and reference surface were compared. Coastline and all minor island membership are not certified by a national agency.
- Earth Engine geometry area and raster pixelArea use different area conventions; their ratio is a sanity check, not a valid-pixel or classification-accuracy percentage.
- GAUL2015 incorrectly assigns Carriacou and Petite Martinique to Saint Vincent; pinned geoBoundaries/OSM 2017 polygons replace GAUL for both countries. Island membership checks passed; the coastline is still a screening source.
ESA WorldCover 2021 v200 · Historical observations · Reviewed 11 October 2026.
Shares use classified pixel area inside each selected screening boundary, including mapped water. They do not measure available farmland. Local classification accuracy and parcel availability are not established.
05Land and access
From a land lead
to a workable parcel.
A country programme or a patch of grassland helps direct the search. A pilot needs a specific place, clear rights and a current agreement.
The 2023 budget reports an earlier Grand Bacolet pilot land-bank step and regularised occupants. That historical activity does not establish a current vacancy list or lease offer.
- Grenada Estimates 2023: land bank and agricultural programmes 2023 budget; reports 2022 progress
What the satellite evidence supports
A fresh calculation using the documented country boundary is complete. Source artifacts, area checks and processing details are preserved. Local classification accuracy and legal land access have not been established.
Land cover describes vegetation; it does not establish vacant, accessible or plantable land. ESA WorldCover v200 observes 2021. Newer Sentinel screening has its own dates, quality controls and geographic scope.
Boundary scope: Selected national polygon was matched uniquely; mapped area and reference surface were compared. Coastline and all minor island membership are not certified by a national agency. Earth Engine geometry area and raster pixelArea use different area conventions; their ratio is a sanity check, not a valid-pixel or classification-accuracy percentage. GAUL2015 incorrectly assigns Carriacou and Petite Martinique to Saint Vincent; pinned geoBoundaries/OSM 2017 polygons replace GAUL for both countries. Island membership checks passed; the coastline is still a screening source.
A separate Sentinel-2 screening for January–September 2026 completed on a 1 km sampling grid. It checks the monitoring workflow and records observation coverage. It is too coarse for parcel decisions and does not establish current land use or availability.
ESA dataset and methodologyHistorical programmes and listings need current written confirmation. Gross parcel area and net plantable area are separate decisions.
06Production priorities
Design around the site
and the people using it.
The government climate portal identifies drought, erratic rainfall, erosion and hurricane damage including Beryl 2024. Obtain post-Beryl condition, island-specific water balance and ferry/road/cold-chain costs. Assess long tree-recovery periods alongside short-cycle food needs.
Compare proposed production with current use. Protect existing livelihoods and valuable habitats. Choose crops and farming systems after soil, water, market and farm-management checks.
These are proposed feasibility priorities. Sources provide country context and do not establish a CaribVista partnership.
08Check the evidence
Country sources, dates and access limits 10 records · Reviewed 11 October 2026
History and local context
- FAO: Production, handling and processing of nutmeg and mace — history and origin ↗1995
- FAO AAACP Paper Series No. 6: Grenada country assessment ↗2009-05
- Grenada Ministry of Finance: Medium-term fiscal framework 2026–2028, agriculture section ↗2025
- FAO: Caribbean agricultural and fisheries recovery after Hurricane Beryl ↗2024-07-11
Land, agriculture and programme evidence
Records distinguish primary text reviewed from excerpts and material that could not be retrieved. A source’s publication date and the review date serve different purposes.
- ESA WorldCover data access
2021 reference map; 2022 release
Access: primary text reviewed. WorldCover v 200 is land cover, not a cadastral, vacancy, crop-yield or legal-availability survey. Accessed on the review date; this does not make historic data current.
- CARDI projects
Publication date not established
Access: primary text reviewed. Existing research and extension projects including Grenada soursop GAP; project time frames require confirmation. Accessed on the review date; this does not make historic data current.
- Grenada Census of Agriculture 2023 national report
2026-01-21; 2023 reference
Access: primary text reviewed. Incomplete enumeration after Beryl was adjusted with capture–recapture estimation; do not describe estimates as a complete count or current vacancy survey. Accessed on the review date; this does not make historic data current.
- Grenada government: food security and climate
Publication date not established
Access: primary text reviewed. Drought, rainfall, erosion and hurricane exposure, including Beryl 2024; no uniform loss or recovery rates. Accessed on the review date; this does not make historic data current.
- Grenada Estimates 2023: land bank and agricultural programmes
2023 budget; reports 2022 progress
Access: primary text reviewed. Pilot Grand Bacolet leases/occupants regularized and continued land-bank intention; historic, not a 2026 offer. Accessed on the review date; this does not make historic data current.
- Grenada Land Registry public service entry
Publication date not established
Access: Official service description and linked Kiosk2024 login requirements read.. Registry search keys include names, book/page or entry-year/registration number; Kiosk2024 access requires an approved legal agency account. No account created, protected search performed or land record retrieved; not a vacancy list.
The next conversation
Help shape a pilot in Grenada.
Bring a local delivery team, a candidate site or a route to customers and households. Together, the next task is to agree the preparation work, its responsibilities and its budget.
Discuss a preparation partnershipAn invitation to prepare a project. Sites, funding and operating partnerships are still to be agreed.