JAS president calls for greater financial aid

Barrington Flemming, Gleaner Writer

WESTERN BUREAU:

PRESIDENT OF the Jamaica Agricultural Society Glendon Harris is calling for a review of the procedures which govern how funds are disbursed to farmers to assist them with crop production.

Harris told The Gleaner in a recent interview that the inordinate delay has been stifling the ability of the farmers to produce their crops in a timely manner.

"The process of getting the funds is long and tedious and if they (farmers) are approved for the loan, by the time they receive the money, the planting season is far gone. So what we find is that all the crops become ready for harvesting at the same time, thereby creating a glut. This situation is far from ideal," Harris said.

He noted that while the former administration had initiated the farmers' market to mop up the excess agricultural produce, it was not the ideal measure as it was stifling some farmers.

"The solution is to have the production spread over the period, whether it is rainy or dry, so we do not experience a shortage of any produce or a glut - neither of the extremes will come into play," Harris argued.

The JAS president also pointed to what he said had become a chronic problem - lack of water, which is required to keep the farms alive year round. "We have the other problem of not being able to plant all year round because of a lack of water. We would want the Government to look at being able to offer pond liners at affordable cost to farmers so that they can harvest rainwater and store it for use in the drier periods," he said.

Harris insisted that this would go a far way in ensuring that demand is met year round, and significantly reduce the need to import agricultural produce.

Warehouse space

Speaking to the issue of food security, the JAS president said Jamaica is not yet ready for that as the country does not have the warehousing capacity. " If Jamaica is going to be serious about food security, we would have to establish significant warehouse space for agricultural produce and put measures in place for grading and packaging. We could look at tomatoes, in the first instance, where they could be stored for six to eight weeks under the right conditions," Harris suggested.

He said the zoning of crops and data-driven production would have to be introduced to ensure that the agricultural products which are demanded are produced in the correct quantities and on time.

"We need to have sustainable vegetable production including lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, Irish potato and tuber crops, tomatoes, egg- plant and some fruit-tree crops," Harris advised.