Minister Shaw Calls On Companies To Aim For Quality Certification

The National Certification Body of Jamaica (NCBJ) has approved six companies for certification.

The six are the Scientific Research Council – Food Pilot Plant; Newport-Fersan (Jamaica) Limited; IGL Limited; Caribbean Depot; the Jamaica Public Service Company Limited – System Protection and Control Department and Ket’s Organic Gourmet Farm.

The NCBJ is the body responsible for ISO 9001:2015 Certification, Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) and Organic Certification.

The six companies recently certified were recognised at a recent NCBJ Certificate Handover Ceremony held at the Bureau of Standards Jamaica headquarters in Kingston.

In congratulating the companies, Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Hon. Audley Shaw, urged other stakeholders within the business sector to pursue national certification and boost their marketability.

“In this pandemic era, the rules of engagement for business have shifted, and certification will boost your marketability and help you stand out in an increasingly competitive marketplace where only the strong survive. Certification is your door to new markets, improved revenue, and happier customers,” he stated.

Three of the six companies were awarded the ISO 9001:2015 stamp of approval.

They are Newport- Fersan (Jamaica) Limited, which manufactures and distributes fertilisers and pesticides; IGL Limited, which distributes and manufactures gases, and the System Protection and Control Department of the Jamaica Public Service Company Limited (JPS).

The System Protection and Control Department of JPS is now certified to design, commission, maintain and decommission protection and control systems involved in generating, transmitting, and distributing electricity in Jamaica.

Meanwhile the wholesale supplier of Caribbean Foods at the Caribbean Depot Limited and the Food Pilot Plant at the Scientific Research Council (SRC) both received the (HACCP) certification.

This means that Caribbean Foods is certified to process wheat nuts and to repack brown and white cane sugar, while the Food Pilot Plant at SRC is certified to produce leg ham, picnic ham and smoked chicken.

Ket’s Gourmet Farm, a microenterprise that supplies vegetables and herbs to supermarkets, was the only company to receive the Organic Certification.

The farm’s certification is now aligned to the Jamaican Standard Code of Practice for Organic Production and Processing, for handling crops like lettuce and a variety of herbs.

Manager of the NCBJ, Navenia Wellington Ford, said the organisation remains committed to assisting all businesses to boost their sustainability.

“The National Certification Body of Jamaica is proud to use this occasion to celebrate our companies that have taken that step, that have built sustainability into their company’s culture and moved towards certification,” she said.