MANCHESTER-BASED education officer Sasha Palmer is carving out a niche with the launch of her popsicle company Liqy Liqy.

In August last year, the young entrepreneur decided to convert a section of her home into a manufacturing outlet and started the production of natural fruit-flavoured popsicles, including a diabetic line.

“My job as education officer meant that I had to travel to many schools, and after seeing how the children were wasting the fruits, I thought about using them to create healthy and enjoyable products,” Palmer told the Jamaica Observer in an interview on Thursday.

“And so I did my research and development and decided to enrol in a University overseas where I learned how to make gelatos and sorbets and just decided to start production thereafter,” she added.

Liqy Liqy currently produces popsicles in a number of flavours including mango passion, tamarind ginger, mixed berries and chocolate banana. Perhaps her most unusual flavour is locust — more commonly known as stinking toe in Jamaica.

“I use every single fruit that you can find here in Jamaica. Right now we just have popsicles on the market to test the flavours that persons are interested in, but we will be distributing gelatos, gelato cookie sandwiches and sorbets very soon,” Palmer told Sunday Finance.

Liqy Liqy employs five women and has contracted 15 local farmers to supply the fruits, vegetables and herbs. Palmer is now looking to supply her products to supermarkets and schools island-wide. The entrepreneur has also invested in a mobile cart which will be traversing the towns come May.

“We want Liqy Liqy to be available to just about everybody. We are promoting good health — we don’t use preservatives or additives. We use cane juice to sweeten our products, plus Jamaican fruits are naturally sweet so that lessens the amount needed,” she stated.

Having a love for fruits as well as experiencing a number of cultures, Palmer formulates her own flavours. But like many small businesses, funding the initial investment of US$100,000 ($11.5 million) was an issue for Palmer when she decided to take her business model off the ground.

“I had to use all my savings and help from my family to get the business started, especially because manufacturing equipment is extremely expensive,” she stated. “None of the equipment was procured here so we had to ship them. I also converted the lower floor of my home into a factory when I realised that I wasn’t able to get funding.”

“Working with the farmers was also a challenge as

well, because we were not going to be able to get all the fruits in one area, but I had help from the experts at the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA),” Palmer added.

Palmer has since joined the Jamaica Manufacturers Association, which assists local entrepreneurs in starting and operating a manufacturing business. The Association also provides networking and business opportunities through its many linkages locally and internationally.

“It was a bit easier for me because of my job. I know what I should look for when I go out to the schools’ food establishments. So with that knowledge I was able to guide myself and I worked closely with the Bureau of Standards and got advice from them also,” the entrepreneur stated.

Currently, Palmer is retailing her popsicles for up to $250, while wholesalers can benefit from discounted prices. She also operates from a base in Kingston and offers free delivery.

Palmer plans on employing up to 500 persons over the next five years and is eyeing the construction of dessert shops island-wide, then expanding into the Caribbean.

“It’s not that we are gender-biased, but our first preference is to employ single mothers,” she stated.

“I believe that if you feed a woman, you feed a nation. If she is earning income you know that the children will be going to school and that food is going to be on the table and that is one of the ways we give back to society, as well as a ‘Go For Me’ fund we created to assist the less fortunate,” Palmer added.