A batch of 223 farm workers will depart the island on Wednesday (April 30) for various provinces in Canada, under the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Programme (SAWP). Of the number, 200 will travel to Ontario, 12 to New Brunswick, three to Quebec and eight to British Columbia, where they will be engaged in harvesting apples, peaches, blueberries, cherries, raspberries, strawberries, as...

The Government continues to make significant strides in combatting praedial larceny. Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green, says 139 arrests were made in 2024, compared to 78 the previous year. Additionally, he said there was in rise in the number of cases before the courts, from 138 in 2023 to 201 in 2024. “In 2023, we formed...

More than US$200,000 has been invested in empowering farmers’ groups in Jamaica since 2019 under the Farmers Organization for Africa, Caribbean, and Pacific (FO4ACP) programme. “These funds facilitated the development of management tools, the implementation of innovative productive techniques and capacity-building initiatives,” said Chief Technical Director in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Courtney Cole. He was speaking at...

Four strawberry farmers have accessed financing of $43 million from the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ), to improve and expand their production. Their success stories were outlined at the Strawberry Cluster Open Day hosted by Diandra Rowe, CARICOM’s Champion Youth Farmer for 2023, at Abbey Garden Farm in Mandeville, Manchester, on April 30. The four farms are Synergy Business Solutions,...

The Jamaica Agricultural Commodities Regulatory Authority (JACRA) will be rolling out its traceability and regulatory platform later this year. Established in 2017 under the Jamaica Agricultural Commodities Regulatory Authority Act, JACRA is a statutory body under the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining. It oversees the development, regulation and standardisation of agricultural commodities such as coffee, cocoa, coconut, and spices,...

Increased export earnings from hot pepper are among the projected outcomes from the soon-to-be concluded ‘Improving Phytosanitary, Food Safety and Market Access Opportunities along the Hot Pepper Value Chain in Jamaica’ project. The project aims to support increased compliance to sanitary and phytosanitary standards for production and export of Jamaica’s hot pepper to the European Union (EU), United Kingdom (UK),...

Farmers across the country are being invited to Hope Gardens in Kingston for the Thank-A-Farmer Wellness Fair on Tuesday, April 29, beginning at 10:00 a.m. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS), Derron Grant, said this event is part of Farmers’ Month activities. “This year, we are celebrating our food heroes and the message is to thank...