Latest

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. J.C. Hutchinson (left), tours a farm in Pennants, Clarendon, which was severely affected by the recent heavy rains. The Minister toured sections of the parish on Thursday (May 26) with officers from the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA).

Gov’t Provides $18 Million to Assist Flood-Affected Farmers

Farmers who have suffered extensive losses from the recent heavy rains will benefit from an $18-million allocation by the Government to begin the rebuilding effort. Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. J.C. Hutchinson,...

Senior Director, Division of Training, Technology and Technical Information at the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), Winston Shaw, speaks about pest management at a recent JIS ‘Think Tank’.

Farmers Urged to Practise Integrated Pest Management to Control BAW

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. JC Hutchinson (centre) accepts a sample of Newport-Fersan’s Potato-Lizer Fertilizer from a representative of the company, Business Development Manager, Hedda Rose-Pitter during a meeting with Irish Potato Farmers at the Restore Pentecostal Church in Devon, Manchester on May 17. At right is Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Audley Shaw.

Gov’t to Roll out Scotch Bonnet Pepper Programme

Principal Director, Training, Technology and Technical Information Division, Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), Marina Young (third left), speaking at a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) ‘Think Tank’ at the Agency’s head office in Kingston on May 12. Others (from left) are Senior Director, Training, Technology and Technical Information Division, RADA, Winston Shaw; Deputy Research Director, Crop and Plant Protection Unit, Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Michelle Sherwood; and Senior Plant Health and Food Safety Specialist, Francine Webb

New Measure Being Developed To Counter Beet Army Worm Infestation

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Hon. Dr. Horace Chang (3rd right), cuts the ribbon to officially commission into service an irrigation system to serve farmers in the Duff House/New Forest area of Manchester last Thursday (May 11). Others (in front row, from left) are Member of Parliament for St. Elizabeth South East, Frank Witter; National Irrigation Commission (NIC) board member, Theresa Turner; Chief Executive Officer of Southside Distributors, Denise Palmer; Caretaker, Alligator Pond Division, Ian Harriott; and Acting CEO NIC, Victor Nembhard.

400 Manchester Farmers Benefiting from Irrigation System

9 years ago Agriculture

Agro-Processors Being Encouraged To Use More Scallion

Agro-processors are being encouraged to use more scallion, to minimise the impact of the beet army worm (BAW) on farmers. “This would help, as farmers would have a ready market to supply the scallion as opposed to leaving them unattended in the fields, which is what creates a host for the BAW to reproduce and grow in numbers,” Deputy Research...

9 years ago Agriculture

Forestry Dept. to Lead Initiative to Restore Mangroves and Swamps

The Forestry Department will be moving on a number of initiatives for the restoration of the island’s mangroves and swamps as part of an expanded mandate to reforest those significantly depleted areas. Out of a Land Use Assessment conducted between 1998 and 2013, it was found that the two forest types have been depleted by some 98 per cent. The...

9 years ago Agriculture

Beet Army Worm to Impact Availability of Scallion

The beet army worm outbreak in South Manchester and surrounding communities is expected to significantly impact the availability of some produce, particularly scallion, in the local market. Principal Director, Training, Technology and Technical Information Division of the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), Marina Young, at a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) ‘Think Tank’ on May 12, described the impact as severe....

Deputy Research Director of the Crop and Plant Protection Unit, Research Development Division in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Michelle Sherwood, addresses JIS ‘Think Tank’ on May 12, about the Beet Army Worm and its impact on farmers.

9 years ago Agriculture

Farmers Urged To Be Careful When Buying Plants

The Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) is urging farmers to be careful when purchasing plants, to avoid the Beet Army Worm (BAW). Speaking at a JIS ‘Think Tank’ on May 12, Deputy Research Director of the Crop and Plant Protection Unit, Research Development Division in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Michelle Sherwood, said farmers outside St. Elizabeth...

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon J.C. Hutchinson (left), in discussion with former Mayor of Morant Bay, Councillor Ludlow Mathison, at the launch of a Production and Marketing Organisation (PMO) parish group for St. Thomas, held at the Village Green Restaurant, in Morant Bay, on May 10.

9 years ago AgricultureCommerce

Agricultural Aides to Assist with Registration of Farmers

The Government is moving to make it easier for farmers to register with the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA). Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon J.C. Hutchinson, says members of production and marketing organisations (PMOs) will be trained to become agricultural aides to assist extension officers with the registration of farmers. He was...

Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries Minister, Hon. Karl Samuda (centre, seated), and Head of the European Union (EU) Delegation in Jamaica, Her Excellency Ambassador Malgorzata Wasilewska (right, seated), sign the EU Sugar Technical Assistance Consultancy Programme agreement at the Ministry’s New Kingston offices on May 10. At left is Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Donovan Stanberry. In the back row (from left) are United Kingdom Deputy High Commissioner to Jamaica, His Excellency Nicholas Astbury; Sugar Transformation Unit Project Manager, Keleen Young-Grandison; Agricultural Attaché, EU Delegation in Jamaica, Stefano Cillí; Technical Assistance Programme Consultants, Gordon Allert and Andreas Bockermann; and Spanish Ambassador-designate to Jamaica, His Excellency Josep María Bosch Bessa.

9 years ago AgricultureCommerce

Sugar Industry to Benefit From EU-Funded Technical Assistance

The sugar industry is set to benefit from the development of a comprehensive financial and economic model being piloted by a European Union (EU)-funded technical assistance consultancy programme. The project, valued at approximately $37.8 million (€266,431), forms part of the EU’s wider complementary 2013 Sugar Accompanying Measures funding support for Jamaica, totalling some $4.18 billion (€29.5 million). Earmarked activities being...

9 years ago Agriculture

Strategies Being Implemented to Tackle Praedial Larceny

Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries Minister, Hon. Karl Samuda, says several strategies are being implemented to prevent and reduce praedial larceny. “These include strengthening the legislative and policy framework, as well as collaborating with other entities, especially our partners in the criminal justice system, to implement special programmes,” Mr. Samuda said. The Minister was making his contribution to the 2017/18...