The Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) was established in 1975 by the Heads of Government of CARICOM to meet the research, technology-generation, and development needs of the agricultural sector in member states. 

Headquartered at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad & Tobago, CARDI has country units in most CARICOM nations. Its mission is to contribute to the sustainable development of Caribbean people by generating, transferring, and applying appropriate technologies in agriculture. CARDI’s work covers a wide range of commodities and themes: root & tuber crops (sweet potato, cassava, dasheen), cereals & legumes (soybean, corn etc.), hot peppers and other vegetables, fruits, small ruminants (goat, sheep), seed and planting material production, agro-biodiversity and germplasm conservation, value-chain development, and climate-smart agriculture. It also works on policy & advocacy, institutional strengthening, partnerships & alliances, and innovation (including ICTs, data / climate services). 

The Institute has aligned its programmes with regional strategies like “Vision 25 x 2025” to help reduce food import bills while promoting local production, resilience, and economic opportunity. CARDI also supports capacity-building of farmers and national agricultural institutions, conducts adaptive trials (e.g. for drought/heat tolerance), pest & disease management, post-harvest research, and uses its headquarters and country offices to coordinate regional agricultural R&D, tech transfer and information sharing.