Ornamental Fish Exposition in October

The Jamaica Ornamental Fish Farmers Association (JOFFA), in celebration of its 10th anniversary, will be staging the country’s first ever ornamental fish exposition next month in Kingston.
The two-day event, which will get underway on October 28 at the Jamaica College campus, will be held in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands. The theme for the event is: ‘Treasures beneath the water: Highlighting opportunities in the pet fish industry’.
According to President of JOFFA, Hugh Graham, “JOFFA has been in operation for 10 years now and so given the fact that there are excellent entrepreneurial opportunities attached to this mode of business, we thought that it was time to have this event”.
He told JIS News that ornamental fish was in huge demand internationally and the potential for Jamaica to earn significant foreign exchange from the sector was “mind boggling”.
“Given our close proximity to mainland America, we need to explore the potential for Jamaica to follow in the footsteps of countries like Singapore and become a major exporter of ornamental fish to the world’s largest markets,” he said.
He invited the public to come out and participate in the exposition, noting that, “we expect on that weekend to provide a forum for the development of new business and exchange of information among industry players such as hobbyists, fish breeders, business owners and financial institutions”.
Mr. Graham said that by showcasing the potential and opportunities available in the ornamental fish trade, the hope was to encourage more people to start their own ornamental fish businesses.
“Currently, the Ministry of Agriculture is actively promoting ornamental fish as a viable business option for inner city youth employment and in fact, has earmark $15 million for this venture. We at JOFFA are very grateful for the strong support we have received from the EX/IM Bank”.
A press conference to launch the exposition will be held at the offices of the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands on Tuesday, September 19 starting at 10:00 a.m.
Persons wishing to contact the JOFFA can do so by calling 757-5650 or visit the organisation’s website @ www.joffajamaica.com.