Dear Editor,

It is a well known fact that the agricultural sector cannot grow in isolation. The solution to our food problem is not simply planting more food. If the proper systems are not put in place we will have a situation of feast today and famine tomorrow. We cannot just look at producing more food. We also have to look at preserving the food that we produce. This is where the agro-processor comes in.

Food security is very important to a country. However, we need to have the proper support and structures in place before we direct farmers into certain crops.

Recently there has been this drive to get farmers into planting more onions. The move is a good one as currently most of our onions are imported. The problem is that the local onions have little or no shelf life. In order to achieve an acceptable shelf life the onions have to be placed in a dryer once they are reaped to extract the excess moisture that causes the spoilage. However, we continue to tell farmers to plant without having the proper structures in place resulting in losses to them.

RADA also needs to advise farmers to diversify and to stagger the planting of their crops. We have a situation where everyone plants the same thing at the same time resulting in a glut followed by a severe shortage. The Government, through its Agro Park initiative, should explore investing into an a septic-processing facility. The end product in this process no longer requires cold storage and can be stored at ambient temperatures without incurring high electricity cost. This would enable them to purchase and store all the fruits available in the form of a puree that can later be used in manufacturing locally or for export.

The agro-processors need to be given some priority as this sector will be the driver of agricultural sector. At any time, most of their capital is tied up in inventory that is purchased from farmers. Pepper purchased from the farmer today will not yield a return until three or four months down the road. Giving the processor a tax holiday will enable them to buy more from the farmers and will advance the industry at the same time.

Having said all of this, we have to ensure that we increase productivity and supply the end product at an affordable and reasonable price. No one is going to buy Jamaican irrespective of the price. Economics will trump patriotism every time.

P Andrew Gray

grays.pepper@cwjamaica.com