farmer's market!!!!

[Muadib]

Well based on how Manufacturing and Agriculture fared under the PNP.. there is certainly a way...

The way how NOT to do things...

[Exile]

Reality me a deal wid!!! How long yu gov. in power now? How long it takes for those crops??? Yu ever plant anyting in yu life?
I say look again:

sugar cane, yellow yam, sweet potato, plantain, escallion, thyme, pumpkin, carrot, lettuce, and tomato????

[Muadib]

Reality ? So there is no long term plan being implemented ??

[Assasin]

they have almost completed 3 processing plant rented by grace and other people for surplus farming and storage.

[Exile]

They? This is the solution? Build plants for Grace. Buy cheap surplus and store? Am I missing something here? Sas, I dont think this can cut it.

[Muadib]

What is your recommendation ?

[Mosiah]

oh! yuh asking questions now!

[Assasin]

they build it and Grace saw that it is worthwhile and least it. It is a lot better than government running it. What Agri project you see government run succesful?

It is a part of the solution and much better than what we had before(nothing) in this area.

[Exile]

I am honoured. I am not an Agri Consultant (if I were it wouldn't be free) BUT ALL these plaster responses to shortages and surpluses have been tried and all have failed for as far back as I know. Have you ever heard about the AMC? The Agricultural Marketing Corporation? It was formed by Gov. to take up the shortfall from wholesale and retail sales for farmers and with a superior distribution system (town outlets) would bring fresh farm products directly to the consumer (shopping householders). Good idea...didn't work...but that is history...Since then the same myopic nonsense..buy excess..we had winter vegetables...overproduction...RADA...same thing...Spring Plain, Clarendon...disaster...
Bottomline - Jamaica cannot and will not EVER be able to compete with large farmers (read imports) for products. We are on an island..rugged island with limited space, small holdings except for sugarcane and citrus.
Stop trying to produce products that we can barely sell locally because of cheaper imports and poor mgt practices and low production...
Look at the list again:

sugar cane - scratch this, ethanol?,
yellow yam - maybe a unique product with some possibilities for export, frozen, canned, value-added, needs new production methods instead of traditional hillside farming that lead to long-term erosion problems. Sm tried not on commercial scale.

sweet potato - waste of time, lots of pest problems, quality control, can be imported cheaply.

plantain - plantain chips on the rise worldwide, other value added products hv possibilities eg sun-dried..
escallion - overated seasoning...can hardly get the purple ones reputed to hv the flavour anymore....can be ground and bottled for seasonings. Limited. Jerk?

thyme - a good product, quality esp the fine-leaved variety...shld be packaged and bottled ala Old Bay etc. or sold fresh in vacuum sealed packs....? doubt surplus in this.
pumpkin - the proverbial over-produced product. So easy to grow...pumpkin ketchup has been tried...failed...thought it wa sgood...
carrot, lettuce, and tomato -can we really grow these for profit?

Strategic focus shld look at a new ways of commercial production - greenhouse, aquaponics (fish & veggies), organic farming for higher valued products for export and health market..eg Jamaican ginger....less use of chemicals (pesticides, weedicides etc) and more IPM (integrated pest mgt) systems. Proper storage and packaging...still to much wastage...
Improvement in rural and agricultural road networks and local distribution of products...
Improved extension systems from Min of Agric or related bodies so a more coordinated approach to crop production and feedback to market systems to forecast gluts/shortages...
Improved marketing body - could be set up by Gov/pvt sector/stakeholders thats responsible specifically for agric products....
Evaluate the competitive agric products and offer incentives for those...loans, credit, grants, assistance, get the youth involved...
Mek mi stop...this is just of my head..
Basically a more holistic coordinated approach...not the use and abuse of Jamaican farmers...slavery days done...maybe not mentally.

[Assasin]

Even with all of that you are still going to have surpluses. We haven't had a lot of surpluses lately instead it was shortage and importation.

With the marketing trust you still need storage and the ability to process some of it to create stuff. You can process things like tomato and make ketup or can it so it is not wasted.

Have you heard about RADA? it was started under the PNP and extended under the present government. Right now I am working with a little man and they went in and tell him what to plant that there is a ready market for. Tell him what the soil is suitable for and assist him to get things he need to get the product to market. RADA also help them with best method
available.

A lot of farmers I speak with think the middleman are the problem as they take their things and don't pay them so many look to the local market instead of thinking about exporting.

[Muadib]

Sound like you need to talk to Chris Tufton and David Lowe (Dr. Henry Lowe son) dem probably stuck in di plantation mode..

[Assasin]

http://www.rada.gov.jm/site_information.php?ID=145

[Exile]

I know of RADA....mentioned in my post...yes, they provide farmers with sm extension services, tech advice etc. but it's not linked to marketing....selling of products is a different thing.
We can't make ketchup on any commercial scale..waste of effort and good tomato...and people only want Grace tomato ketchup...although Heinz is the King of all...
I agree about the middlemen thing..but the large processors like Grace and others do the same thing...or buy cheaply...

[Assasin]

Grace buy cheaply but they pay the farmers. Yes we need better marketing but it is a two way street. We can't just talk bout marketing and a produce sample. This may force the powers to be to look for more market for these products.

Later I will talk to you have to run