The Scientific Research Council (SRC), in partnership with the International Atomic Energy Agency, has started a breeding programme using radiation to modify the genes of ginger affected by the Rhizome Rot. Executive Director of the SRC, Dr. Cliff Riley, told JIS News that the process, which seeks to eliminate the fungus that affects locally produced ginger, involves exposing the ginger...

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Derrick Kellier, says  National Hero, the Rt. Excellent Samuel Sharpe, was not only instrumental in the abolition of slavery, but has left an enviable legacy of selflessness that Jamaicans should emulate. Speaking at the ‘Flames of Freedom’ celebration to commemorate the 184th anniversary of the Christmas Rebellion, which saw some 50,000 slaves taking up...

Approximately $16.5 million in grant assistance has been provided by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, and several stakeholder partners, for 100 young persons and women, under the 2015/16 National Irish Potato Expansion Programme, currently underway. Portfolio Minister, Hon Derrick Kellier, said the allocation, which includes inputs from the Canada-based Promotion of Regional Opportunities for Produce through Enterprises and Linkages...

The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries is to conduct research trials on 15 new varieties of imported Irish potato over the next three months, to determine their suitability for local conditions. Portfolio Minister, Hon. Derrick Kellier, said the research into the new potato varieties forms part of activities under the National Irish Potato Expansion Programme, being funded at a cost...

The country’s importation of fries could be reduced by at least 30 per cent over the next three years, with the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries’ introduction of the ‘Challenger’ variety of Irish potato, deemed ideal for producing this popular fast food item. Noting that currently, seven million kilogrammes of fries are imported annually at a cost of  $700 million,...

Twenty farmers in the Waugh Hill community of Sligoville, St. Catherine, were the beneficiaries of 650-gallon water tanks on December 9, under the Drought Mitigation Programme of the Ministry of Agriculture. The tanks, which are provided through the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), were delivered by Minister with responsibility for Sport and Member of Parliament for North Central St. Catherine,...

The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries is reporting that there has been a significant reduction in the beet armyworm infestation across farms that are usually vulnerable to the pest. The pest mostly affects scallion, onion, pepper, beetroot, callaloo, watermelon, cantaloupe, muskmelon and cotton farms in some farming communities in St. Elizabeth and Manchester. Speaking with JIS News, Zonal Plant Health...

Agriculture and Fisheries Minister, Hon. Derrick Kellier, is encouraging players in the sugarcane industry to examine the benefits of green cane harvesting. He noted that the method is already being practised by a few farmers, and recommends that its use be expanded across the industry because of its far-reaching benefits. “It promotes better environmental practices, reduces the impact on the...

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Derrick Kellier, says Red Stripe’s decision to add cassava in its brewing process is expanding the agricultural sector, and providing increased income to farmers. The Minister, who was addressing the opening of Red Stripe’s Wallen Cassava Farm, in Linstead, St. Catherine, today (December 7), said the entire Ministry is pleased with the “progress of...