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Bee farmers, who qualify under the Beekeeping Revolving Loan Programme, will begin receiving the funds as early as the next two weeks. Under the programme, established bee farmers will receive a maximum of about $250,000 to commercialize their operations, which will include increasing beehives and purchasing additional equipment in a bid to boost honey production. The money will provide for...

Persons illegally importing honey into the island are being warned to desist, or face confiscation of their goods under the Beekeeping Act. According to Reginald Peddy, Chief Apiculture Officer in the Ministry of Agriculture, there has been an influx of honey being brought into the island without proper authorization, and this practice was threatening the growth of the local industry....

Thirty young men and women will begin a period of apprenticeship this month under the Ministry of Agriculture's $3.5 million Beekeeping Apprenticeship Programme, geared at providing employment opportunities for those who have an interest in the industry. Hugh Smith, Senior Plant Protection Officer in the Apiculture Unit of the Ministry, informs JIS News that the first phase of the programme...

A number of tests are currently being carried out to ascertain the best methodology to combat the small hive beetle, a pest that affects beehives and could have a devastating effect on the bee and honey industries, if not brought under control. And, with the honey industry poised for take off, with huge markets identified both locally and overseas, all...

Olydia Cole, a 22 year-old Home Economics teacher at St. Hilda's High School in St. Ann, walked away with the coveted National Farm Queen title last night (July 30), at the 53rd staging of the Denbigh Agricultural and Industrial Show in May Pen, Clarendon. With 131 points, the new queen took the title from a field of eight contestants representing...

Ebony Park Heart Academy in Clarendon emerged champions in the Public Speaking competition, held yesterday (July 30), at the 53rd staging of the annual Denbigh Agricultural and Industrial Show in the parish. The opening day was designated 'Youth in Agriculture Day', and competitors from different schools and groups had to face the judges and speak on the topic: 'Agriculture: A...

Parents and guardians attending the Denbigh Agricultural and Industrial Show in May Pen, Clarendon from July 30 to August 1, will find an even bigger and exciting entertainment package for their charges at the new and improved 'Kiddies Village'. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS), Lawrence Madden tells JIS News that although the show has always...

Jamaica 4-H clubbites will vie for honours when they compete in an exciting 'cook off' to be held as part of the 2005 Denbigh Agricultural and Industrial Show. The competition, which will be held on the final day of Denbigh on Monday, August 1, will see 10 clubbites and 4-H leaders displaying their culinary skills as they prepare dishes utilizing...

The Apiculture Unit at Bodles in St. Catherine has undertaken a hurricane restoration programme valued at some $3.5 million, to partially restock the colonies of those bee farmers, who suffered losses during Hurricane Ivan last September. Reginald Peddy, Chief Apiculture Officer, informs JIS News that the Ministry of Agriculture has decided to purchase bees for the breeding of nucleus colonies...

The Ministry of Agriculture is undertaking a $15 million beekeeping census to assess the true state of the industry and to properly plan for its development. Director at the Ministry's Databank and Evaluation Division, Michael Price, told JIS News, that during the four-week survey period, which started on June 13, "we are expecting to contact all beekeeping operations and carry...

Minister of Agriculture, Roger Clarke has said that the Ministry was taking the necessary precautions to ensure that beef imported was free of the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or mad cow disease. Recently, there were two reported cases of the disease in the United States. The Minister, in his address at the Jamaica Agricultural Society/St. Catherine Association of Branch Societies...

Approximately 15,000 of 24,000 farmers in Clarendon have already been registered under the Rural Agricultural Development Authority's (RADA) Agricultural Business Information Systems (ABIS) Programme. Percival Shaw, Parish Manager for RADA, Clarendon told JIS News that the registration procedure was part of the government's anti-praedial larceny, being initiated by government. He noted that the process, which started in March, was going...