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Jamaica is among more than 130 countries which have benefitted from upwards of US$20 million in project grant funding from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (FAO) Telefood Special Fund (TSF), since its establishment in 1997. Speaking at a recent ceremony involving one of the beneficiaries, Garvey Maceo High School in Vernamfield, Clarendon, FAO Representative to Jamaica, the Bahamas...

Agriculture and Fisheries Minister, Hon. Roger Clarke, is urging greater banana and cocoa outputs from St. Mary, one of the country’s prime regions that produces these crops. Speaking at the launch of the Ministry’s $42 million ginger and turmeric projects at the Orange River Research Station in the parish on Thursday (March 8), Mr. Clarke, in noting that St. Mary...

The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries has embarked on two $42 million ginger and turmeric projects, aimed at, among other things, enhancing development and outputs through the cultivation of some 510 acres of the spices this year, and providing employment for just over 830 stakeholders. Addressing the project launch, at the Ministry’s Agricultural Research Station in Orange River, St. Mary,...

Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Hon. Anthony Hylton, said the Ministry intends to strengthen its programmes aimed at ensuring the safety of food from production through to consumption.  “By doing this, we ensure acceptable standards for consumption in our local markets and in the countries to which we export,” the Minister stated. He was addressing a ceremony held Tuesday...

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Roger Clarke, said that increasing production and consumption of local produce is a top priority of government, as it looks to reign in imports and increase economic gains. “In a developing country such as ours, and as a government, we believe… (this) must and should be the order of the day,” he said on...

Commissioner of Police, Owen Ellington, is calling on all farmers to get registered, noting that this is one of the most effective ways to ensure the success of the Agricultural Produce Receipt Book Programme. “I want to appeal to every Jamaican farmer to get registered and get your receipt books,” he implored. The Commissioner was speaking on Tuesday (February 28)...

The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries has re-launched the Agricultural Produce Receipt Book Programme in an effort to curb the nagging problem of praedial larceny. Under the initiative, all registered farmers and vendors are required to issue a receipt, identifiable by a unique number, to anyone who purchases agricultural produce, as proof of payment.   Speaking at the re-launch held...

The new wage agreement for workers within the sugar industry was on Feb. 23 signed between the Sugar Producers’ Federation and trade union groups representing employees. The agreement will see the workers benefiting from a nine-point claim, which will also cover improved working conditions. It was signed after months of negotiations and intervention by the Ministry of Labour and Social...

More than 4,000 of the island’s coffee farmers are to benefit from a $29 million grant being provided by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. Portfolio Minister, Hon. Roger Clarke, who made the announcement at a press briefing at his Hope Gardens office on February 23, said it is estimated that this grant will “contribute some 30 to 40 per...

Agriculture and Fisheries Minister, Hon. Roger Clarke, said that the Ministry is awaiting a progress report on the proposed divestment of the state-owned Wallenford Coffee Company Limited from the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ), which is leading the process. Speaking at a press briefing at the Ministry’s Hope Gardens offices on February 23, Mr. Clarke said that to date, only...

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Roger Clarke, says moving the banana industry forward is a top priority of the Government, with two major goals being an increase in local consumption and exporting  the fruit to neighbouring countries, such as the Cayman Islands, Turks and Caicos and the Bahamas. He said the Ministry is in the final stage of discussions...

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Roger Clarke, says the Government is committed to moving agriculture forward, by reviving the traditional crops, such as sugar, banana, coffee, cocoa and citrus. Citing the great economic potential that exists in sugar cane production, the Minister said that currently, there is $658 million in the Cane Expansion Fund, and the Government would increase...