Cremo Limited's new 5,000-gallon milk processing plant was officially opened by Lady Bustamante at a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Sir Alexander Bustamante and Health Minister Dr Herbert Eldemire. The plant, a significant private investment by the Chin-Loy family, aims to address Jamaica's low milk consumption and improve milk quality through advanced processing techniques. Dr Eldemire highlighted the government's plans to triple milk production over the next decade.

Published Thursday, August 22, 1963

Eldemire opens Cremo plant

The new 5,000-gallon milk processing plant owned by Cremo Limited, at 284 Spanish Town Road, Kingston, was officially opened yesterday afternoon by the Minister of Health, the Hon Dr Herbert Eldemire before a fair-size gathering among whom were the Prime Minister, the Hon Sir Alexander Bustamante, and Lady Bustamante. The button to start the compressors in the plant was pushed by Lady Bustamante.

In his opening address, Dr Eldemire congratulated members of the Chin-Loy family, who own and operate the plant. He commended them for their efforts as a team in putting up the project and said that, in doing so, the family fixed a magnificent and pressing need in the community.

Dr Eldemire said that, in the past, there had been a sore neglect of people’s attitudes towards drinking milk, which was “Nature’s most nearly perfect food”. The consumption of this item in Jamaica, he said, was very small, amounting to only 10 million gallons per year.

The minister of health told the gathering that the government had plans to treble the present island production over the next 10 years, taking it up to 30 million gallons a year.

He outlined in detail the government's scheme to provide financial assistance and facilities for training to dairy farmers, in order to increase Jamaica’s milk output.

Dr Eldemire noted that the factory had contracted with 17 dairy farmers in St Catherine and Clarendon to supply milk to the plant. He said he would like particularly to congratulate the directors of the company on this action, for not only had they bargained for a guaranteed supply but also for guaranteed quality of milk which would not be touched by hand. Dr Eldemire described the company’s action as “a good thing which was needed for a long time in Jamaica”.

3,000 gallons

The guest speaker said that the firm had contracted for 3,000 quarts per day, in the hope that this supply would increase to at least 3,000 gallons a day in the near future.

Dr Eldemire concluded by wishing the company every success in its venture.

Lady Bustamante, wife of the prime minister, then pushed the button to start the compressors in the plant.

Chairman at the opening ceremony was Victor Chin-Loy, manager of Cremo Limited.

He welcomed the guests and gave details of the background to the setting up of the plant.

One advantage which Chin-Loy said would be created for the consumer in the setting up of the plant was that Grade A milk, produced with ideal equipment under most sanitary conditions, would be made available. He concluded with a detailed description of the method of handling and processing the milk.

The second speaker for the afternoon was  Dr Arthur Chin-Loy, acting chairman of the board of directors. He told the auditors the plants had cost the company $150,000  Dr Chin-Loy. Seeing a heavy expenditure of private capital investment on our part is indicative of our trust in the stability of the government and the confidence placed in the island’s economy.”

He said that the quality of milk which Cremo was introducing to Jamaica was “undoubtedly revolutionary”.

‘Our confidence’

“It has always been our contention that the average milk produced on Jamaican farms is comparable to world standards.

However, lack of adequate refrigeration and proper sanitation practices during the time the milk leaves the cow until it reaches the customer have resulted in consistently poor quality with consequence of consumer acceptance.”

Dr Chin-Loy said that the success of the dairy industry in Jamaica depended not only on increased productivity on the farms but also on increased consumer acceptance of the product being offered.

He emphasised that a considerable educational programme was necessary to convert the Jamaican public to the habit of drinking milk, especially now that first-class quality milk was available. He said: “The dairy industry needs imagination to promotion and merchandising. We need to apply ideas, ingenuity to the products we have to offer, to the manner in which we promote them and to the methods by which we distribute them.”

He said that, though no financial assistance was provided by government for the processing and distribution ends of the dairy industry, “we should export that government be more receptive to providing greater tax incentives, duty-free entry of dairy equipment and refrigerated transport vehicles, and to encourage the formation of more milk processing plants throughout the island for their fluid milk, all incentives given them to increase production will lose their value.”

Dr Chin-Loy, in the course of his speech, also called for the enactment of firmer legislation to enforce the compulsory pasteurisation of milk for public health reasons. He mentioned the setting up of a National Bureau of Standards and said that definite standards should be established for the quality of milk being sold to the consumer and, more important, such standards should be rigidly enforced.

After the official opening ceremony, members of the audience were taken on a tour of the project.

In the gathering were the Minister of Communications and Works, the Hon Ken Jones, Mr Pen Fu, charge d’Affaires for Nationalist China, and Mrs Yu, and the mayor of the Corporate Area, Councillor Leonard Currey. 

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