More than 841 acres of cocoa in St. Mary have been treated under the Frosty Pod Rot Management Programme. Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Audley Shaw, said that 288 farmers in the parish have benefited under the initiative. St. Mary produces the most cocoa in the island, with the finest flavour. The Frosty Pod Rot Management Programme...

The Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries will be lobbying for a $1.4-billion allocation in the next Budget to rehabilitate more farm roads islandwide in the 2020/2021 financial year. Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. J.C. Hutchinson, made the disclosure during the official opening of the rehabilitated Dragoon to Flagstaff and Prosper...

Effective February 1, disinfectant mats will be installed at the Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston as part of the Government’s efforts to reduce the risk of plant and animal pests entering the country. Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Audley Shaw, made the announcement on Wednesday (January 22) at the Launch of the International Year of Plant...

Minister of State in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Floyd Green, says emphasis will be placed on increasing the number of community groups of traditional growers participating in the Alternative Development Programme. The programme aims to prevent and eliminate the illicit cultivation of ganja and channel the process through legal streams. The 1998 Action Plan, adopted...

The Jamaica 4-H Clubs will be hosting its inaugural National Youth in Agriculture Symposium on February 5 at the Northern Caribbean University in Manchester. The annual event, which is expected to attract some 3,000 youth from across the island, will be held under the theme: ‘I am Agrismart’. It forms part of Jamaica 4-H Clubs’ thrust to position agriculture as...

A new agricultural transformation project will soon commence in St. Catherine, as the Government aims to create more wealth among local farmers. “Within a matter of months, this transformation will begin. In fact, in the Bernard Lodge and Innswood areas of St. Catherine, we are going to be seeing, over the next six to 12 months, a transformation starting with...

The first batch of farmworkers for 2020 began departing the island for Canada, today (January 3). A total of 228 workers will be leaving between now and Monday (January 6), to take up employment opportunities under the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Programme. The customary send-off ceremony was held for the workers at the Ministry of Labour and Social Security’s Overseas Employment...