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Opposition Spokesperson on Finance, Audley Shaw, has given his party’s full support of the Government’s plan to establish agro parks, which are aimed at moving the country towards food security. “We fully support this concept. We believe in a value-added approach to agriculture, where farmers’ output can become agro processors’ input with branded products such as sauces and spices,” Mr....

Veteran St. James farmer, Carlton Smith, strongly believes that the agricultural industry holds the solution to Jamaica’s economic challenges. He supports the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries ‘Eat What You Grow, Grow What You Eat’ campaign, and suggested that more idle land should be put into production so that the country can feed itself and reduce the spending on imported...

The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries is looking to identify more arable lands on which to cultivate sorghum, a crop currently being tested as a substitute grain for animal feed. This was disclosed by portfolio Minister, Hon. Roger Clarke, while speaking to journalists today (April 19), following the harvesting of a pilot sorghum crop in Hill Run, St. Catherine. The...

The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries will be pursuing initiatives aimed at enhancing Jamaica’s food security and reducing the country's annual food import bill of US$1 billion. “We have decided we are going to put a serious dent in that,” emphasised portfolio Minister, Hon. Roger Clarke, as he spoke at the launch of the Jamaica 4-H Club’s National Achievement Expo...

The Government’s efforts to Enhance the Resilience of the Agricultural Sector and Coastal Areas have been boosted with the injection of $114.3 million. This is contained in the 2013/14 Estimates of Expenditure, now before the House of  Representatives. The project, which began in October 2012, aims to increase sectoral resilience and adaptive capacity to cope with the impacts of climate...

The Government will be expending $25.4 million this fiscal year, to strengthen the capacity of testing laboratories involved in the export of agricultural and agro-processed products to the European Union (EU) markets. The allocation, provided under the European Development Fund Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) Capacity Building Project, is contained in the 2013/2014 Estimates of Expenditure, which is now before the...

The Coffee Competitiveness Enterprise Programme is to receive $10.4 million this fiscal year, to help small farmers improve productivity, and producers to acquire appropriate tools and technologies. The project, as outlined in the 2013/14 Estimates of Expenditure, and being implemented by the Coffee Industry Board, seeks to provide capacity building of co-operatives in the central and northern regions of the...

The Government is to spend some $18 million on a project aimed at protecting the livelihoods and food security of residents of vulnerable communities. The sum is allocated to the Enhancing the Resilience of the Agricultural Sector and Coastal Areas project, as contained in the 2013/2014 Estimates of Expenditure, now before the House of Representatives. Formerly launched in November 2012,...

Efforts at enhancing the resilience of the country’s agricultural sector and coastal areas have been shored up with an allocation of $11.75 million. This is set out in the 2013/14 Estimates of Expenditure currently before the House of Representatives. Through funding from the Adaptation Fund, the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) is working to protect livelihoods and...

The Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) is to spend $38.4 million this fiscal year to continue to promote sustainable development in traditional banana growing areas. This sum has been allocated in the budget for 2013/14, which will be examined by the Standing Finance Committee of the House of Representatives, beginning April 9. The Banana Support Project, which is being funded...

A total of 240 small farmers in eastern parishes are to benefit from loans this fiscal year to enhance agricultural production. These include some 80 banana and plantain farmers and 160 vegetable, Irish potato and onion farmers. The provision comes under the Agricultural Support Project, for which some $57 million has been set aside in the 2013/14 Estimates of Expenditure,...

Farmers will receive more assistance from the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries this year, through an allocation of $127.4 million, which has been earmarked to improve irrigation management. This will increase production and the earning power of farmers across the island. As set out in details of the allocation, which is contained in the government's budget for the 2013/14 fiscal...