Agriculture Minister Dr. Mahendra Reddy.

The government will help revive the Nawailevu Cocoa project.

The project suffered a loss in 1986 and Agriculture Minister Dr. Mahendra Reddy says they will work with the Nawailevu landowners to bring it back on track.

Dr. Reddy says 500-acres of land will now be utilized for this Cocoa rehabilitation project.

“We don’t want to repeat those mistakes. This time around we want to be upfront. We want to be very clear about what kind of model we want. The model that we want is that you treat this cocoa farming as a business.”

Dr. Reddy says there is huge potential in the Cocoa market given the demand from local businesses and chocolate companies overseas.

The government will assist in transporting cocoa to the Agriculture station for weighing and will also provide markets locally and overseas.