Government Will Not Abandon Sugar – Samuda

Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Karl Samuda, says the Government has no intention of abandoning the local sugar industry.

Addressing a ceremony in Savanna-la-Mar, Westmoreland, on June 4 to relaunch the parish’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Minister said that abandoning the sugar industry would be a retrograde step, and would negatively impact thousands of workers in the sector.

“There are some misguided people who believe that it would be wiser for us to abandon sugar. To those I say fine, you want to abandon sugar, give me the alternative. Tell me where you are going to employ some 50,000 of our Jamaican workers. We cannot, and this Government has no intention of reducing its support for sugar in this country,” he said.

The Minister pointed out that while the sugar industry is faced with challenges, there are innovative ways to make it remain viable. He said the time is right for a more focused effort to use sugar as a raw material to move into the value-added field.

Mr. Samuda said Jamaica must enter the sugar by-products arena in a strong way to help to secure the future of the industry which has served the country well over the years.

“Technology can facilitate the processing of our own raw sugar and marketing it to the rest of the world,” he added.