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The Coffee Industry Board (CIB) is seeking private sector funding for the development of a 1,000-acre coffee farm as part of efforts to boost production of the crop. Board Chairman, Howard Mitchell, said that the CIB has already written proposals for financing for the venture, which will be designed in 200-acre modules. "The total development cost for this project is...

With the recent implementation of the "One Stop Shop" Import Export Inspection Centre, plans are now afoot to implement a Food Safety Agency to consolidate the work of the seven agencies housed at the centre. The announcement was made by chairperson of the sub-committee for the establishment of the Jamaica Import Export Inspection Centre, Sheila Harvey, Wednesday (July 1) at...

Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw says agriculture, and agro-industry in particular, must be a critical part of the replacement industry for bauxite. "It's not to say that bauxite and alumina is completely dead. Clearly, when the world market is buoyant again, we will be able to see our factories reopen, but the truth is the economic...

The crowning of the National Farm Queen will be among the main attractions at the 57th staging of the Denbigh Agricultural and Industrial Show, at the Denbigh Showground in Clarendon on July 31-August 2, 2009. As the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS) continues to recognise the significant role Jamaican women play in the development of agriculture, the National Farm Queen Competition...

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Dr. Christopher Tufton, has said that the agricultural sector has been responding positively and filling the void left by a fallout in other industries. He pointed out that despite numerous challenges facing the productive sector throughout Jamaica, production within the agricultural sector has been steadfast and doing better than most of the other sectors....

Several peanut farmers in St. Elizabeth benefitted from a recent training seminar, hosted by the Jamaica 4-H Clubs, at the Warminster peanut factory in the parish. Presenter at the seminar, Chief Technical Director in the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Dr. Mark Panton, told JIS News that the farmers can increase their yields by controlling their farming techniques. "At the...

Thousands of Jamaican farmers are to be exposed to best practices in agricultural production and available marketing opportunities through the inaugural staging of the Production and Marketing Organisation (PMO) conference and exposition tomorrow (June 25) at the Trelawny Multi-purpose Stadium. The one-day event, which is the brainchild of Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Dr. Christopher Tufton, is being hosted...

President of the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS), Senator Norman Grant, has called on stakeholders in the agricultural sector to implement and drive the 'crop targeting' process, where crops are identified for production in specific quantities, in order to reduce the country's reliance and dependence on foreign foods. "Jamaica's domestic production statistics over the last 15 years is about 400,000 metric...

Cabinet has approved divestment of two factories owned by the Sugar Company of Jamaica (SCJ) - St. Thomas Sugar Company (formerly Duckenfield) and the Trelawny Sugar Company - to private interests. St. Thomas Sugar Company will be divested to a consortium comprising Fred M. Jones Estate Limited and Seprod Limited, while the Trelawny Sugar Company will be divested to Everglades...

The Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) is reporting an increase in crop production in Manchester. Deputy RADA Parish Manager, Samuel Harris, said that more than 4,253 hectares of crop were reaped in Manchester for the period June 2008 to June 2009, reflecting a 16.5 per cent increase over the previous reporting period. "That is very good. That places (Manchester) third...

In a time of global recession and personal financial hardships, there are still some people, who continue to give generously, for the benefit of others. One such person is 87-year old Stanley Amritt, affectionately called 'Busher', a kind and caring banana farmer from the rural community of Highgate in St. Mary. Mr. Amritt donated $4.5 million for the construction of...

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Dr. Christopher Tufton, is urging farmers to increase their production, in order to fill most of the void that has been created by the decline of the bauxite industry. The Minister, who was addressing the Annual Conference of the St. Elizabeth branch of the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS), on Thursday, (June 18) at the...