Congratulations are in order as local farmer Michael Joseph won the prestigious award for this year’s CARICOM Youth Farmer of the year.

The 25-year-old received the award on September 29 during the opening ceremony of the 19th Caribbean Week of Agriculture, held in Basseterre. The presentation was made by St. Kitts and Nevis Deputy Prime Minister Geoffrey Ian Hanley.

Joseph who is also the President of the Antigua and Barbuda Agriculture Forum for Youth began in agriculture in 2019.

He has been celebrated for his innovative approaches to farming like using drones to spray crops with insecticides.

“Well, I’ve always had a passion for agriculture and farming really gave me the opportunity to make my passion a career.  So, you could say I’ve always had the longing for nature and agriculture, as far as I can remember. I felt just excited, but I kind of felt like it wasn’t so excited. It was more, I don’t want to sound arrogant, but I had a confidence that I knew I was going to win,” Joseph said on state media.

He is encouraging other farmers to not give up as most times seeing a profit takes a bit of time.

“Yes, I would say don’t give up too easy. You can’t make the first setback be your last. You have to keep moving forward no matter what.  You have to be kind of, let’s say, relentless.  When things go bad, you have to make it good. You have to have the mental fortitude to continue to go forward. I would say start small and don’t wait for the perfect time because oftentimes you wait for the perfect time. As they say, the best time to plant a tree is always ten years ago. You just start today and with whatever you have and just don’t be afraid to fail. You know that you’re going to fail and just continue moving forward, Joseph advised.

Joseph produces mostly okra, tomatoes and watermelon.

He shared some of his plans.

“I plan to maybe in the next two years maybe enter for the Farm of the Year for the CARICOM and continue to grow and expand my farm and be a more consistent farmer,” he added.