Denbigh Comes Alive May 13 With Jamaica 4-H Clubs National Achievement EXPO

The public is being encouraged to come out and support youth farmers at the Jamaica 4-H Clubs National Achievement Expo 2022, to be staged at the Denbigh showground in Clarendon, on Friday, May 13.

The event will be held under the theme ‘Youth in Agriculture, Strengthening Food Security Through Innovation and Technology’.

Public Relations and Marketing Manager, Karelle McCormack, told JIS News that it is expected that a little over 1,000 persons will be present, including 10 exhibitors from the agricultural landscape.

“One of the highlights of this year’s achievement expo is the 4-H youth farmer competition. So, we would have had 28 representatives, male and female… from the Parish level, so we expect to have them all again at the nationals,” Ms. McCormack said.

She also informed that there will be displays, featuring agriculture, food production and environmental awareness.

“We are also going to have displays depicting aquaponics and hydroponics, because the 4-H Clubs have also encompassed, as part of its training opportunities, fisheries. Against this background, we also have as one of our new events – the care and management of ornamental fish,” Ms. McCormack noted.

The 4-H Clubs have also been championing the cause of food diversification for the last two years, particularly against the backdrop of what has been happening as it relates to food security.

As a result, the group will be highlighting a wide variety of food items that Jamaicans may add to their regular diets.

“[This] is basically looking at foods we may not have seen from way back in the past or foods that we didn’t know that we could consume and actually have nutritious meals out of them. We will also be having a youth farmers’ market, so these same youth farmers whom we will be featuring are also going to be there showcasing their produce,” Ms. McCormack said.

“These are not only farmers who would have entered the competition, but also youth farmers whom we would have certified, youth farmers who would have also been part of our youth entrepreneurship development programmes,” she added.

Meanwhile, Parish Manager, Manchester 4-H Clubs, Dwain Moodie, said his members are looking forward to the event, as it has been two years since they have had the opportunity to showcase, in a tangible way, what they have been doing.

“Our youth farmers in Manchester… they want to showcase their produce. They would have been supported under the 4-H Clubs’ Rural Youth Economic Empowerment Programme (RYEEP), where we train them and give them input support, and so they have these produce that they want to show that agriculture is alive and well,” Mr. Moodie said.

He also highlighted the fact that youth farmers in Manchester are on the cutting edge when it comes to utilising technology to grow their produce.

“Hydroponics and Aquaponics – we have those. We have also basic tools such as fruit picker, a simple technology that can be used for picking fruits to prevent damage. There is also the use of other reaping tools and ploughing implements. We have constructed some tools that we can use to make reaping and ploughing the soil much easier. So, some of those are the basic technologies that we are looking at,” he said.

Persons who are unable to go to the venue, may view the event online, as it will be live streamed on the Jamaica 4-H clubs social media pages.

The 4-H Movement is considered to be the leading youth organisation in the island, with more than 100,000 members.

It is mandated to provide skills training for young people, aged five to 25, in the areas of agriculture, home economics, social skills, entrepreneurship, environmental awareness and healthy lifestyle.

The Movement also seeks to provide a cadre of trained young leaders, capable of contributing to national development.

For more information about the activities of the Jamaica 4-H Clubs, persons can visit the organisation’s website at www.jamaica4hclubs.com or call (876) 927-4050-2.