Local value-added products showcased at Agrofest 2025

Patrons at Agrofest 2025 were treated to an array of value-added products, well beyond the abundance of raw produce on offer .

This year’s event, which was organised by the Kingston and St Andrew Association of Branch Societies of the Jamaica Agricultural Society, was held on Saturday, May 31 at the agriculture ministry’s playfield at Hope Gardens in St Andrew.

The various stalls were manned by passionate entrepreneurs like Lois Green of Rural Treasure Treat, a sugar cane juice-producing family business; and Milton Bonner, owner of Love Drumz Sandalz, where customers could purchase handmade leather footwear.

For Green, Rural Treasure Treat is rooted in family tradition. Growing up, her father would prepare cane juice as the morning drink and serve it with dukunnu before she and her siblings went off to school.

Recalling her father’s method, Green explains: “What they usually do is, they cut out a section of a piece of pimento wood, and then use a stick to pump it and squeeze the juice from the cane, and then he would put it in the pot with a piece of fever grass or lemon leaf, to how you may want the taste, and he boiled it and we drink it for our tea,” she recalled.

Green pointed out that this would often be done on a Sunday and used over two days.

She shared that after her father passed away, she decided to continue the practice, having developed a longing for the treat. She acquired a sugar cane juice machine and started the business in 2024.

“My daddy passed off a while now, and me still love the taste of [the cane juice], so I said I’ll try it for myself. So here I am, trying from early last year,” she said.

FAMILY BUSINESS

The business, with its base in Content Gap, in the hills of St Andrew, is carried out with the help of various family members, some of whom were at the agricultural show assisting with business operations, including the juicing of sugar cane for sale and sampling.

The price of the juice ranges from $1,000 for a one-litre bottle, $450 for a 500-millilitre bottle and $350 for the 350-millilitre bottle.

“You can get [things] added. We do it with white rum, ginger, lime, mango, passion, carrots – we do fusions. So, it’s up to you, what you like. You say it, we will do it,” Green said.

The orders are then brought to a central location, like Papine, Liguanea and occasionally Half-Way Tree, and delivered at an extra cost of $250.

When asked about the various issues she encounters in her operation, Green said that a lack of marketing has been her main problem with growing the business.

“Well, I need some promotion, and that’s why I try to come to shows like this, because not much people know about it, and we are way up in the hills. So, we come drop off business cards, and people try it (cane juice) and get to love it and from that, they would order,” Green outlined.

She said there has not been an issue with supply, as she plants sugar cane and occasionally buys from farmers.

“Maybe because my orders are not very large, I don’t have much problem right now. But I’m still planting more, hoping that the business will get bigger and I still have enough to supply my business,” she says.

Bonner described his leather footwear business as a “vibrant” one that is often patronised by returning customers.

A part-owner of Love Drumz Sandalz, located on Chancery Street in Kingston, he says his shoes and sandals are made from goat and cow skins.

His products range from Derby shoes, Chukka boots, and Oxford shoes to comfortable, stylish and unique sandals for women and men.

The HEART/NSTA Trust-trained shoemaker explained, however, that while he does receive some support from customers, he hopes that more people would see the value in his handmade leather craftsmanship.

“[The business] is vibrant, you know. But people love the cheaper stuff, because when you use natural leather, which is from the animal, it costs a lot. So, a lot of persons don’t like to spend money to buy that sort of stuff,” Bonner said.

He added that parents often come to his business to repair shoes bought elsewhere after their children use them for a short period.

He argued that it is more cost-efficient to buy properly made shoes from Love Drumz Sandals.

“So, they have to spend like half the price, or more than the price that they spent to buy it, to come and fix it at us. So, we make money, but I don’t like that. Better you buy something nice and good from before,” he maintains.

Bonner said that the shoes at his business cost approximately $16,000, while sandals range from $3,500 to $8,000.

He is encouraging Jamaicans to buy locally made footwear, but warns persons to be cautious.

“If they’re choosing something else other than local-made [footwear], they should choose wisely. Spend the money and buy the proper stuff, because some people in the market will sell stuff that is not really up to standard for the expensive price. So, they have to go with someone who knows quality over quantity..,” Bonner advised.