THE Government has given a March 2017 timeline for the construction of a banana chips factory in Trinity, St Mary.

General manager of the All Island Banana Growers Association (AIBGA), Donald Elvey, made the announcement while addressing stakeholders at a ceremony held recently at the Trinity Farm Supply Outlet in the parish.

Elvey noted that some $800 -million worth of banana products are imported into Jamaica annually. He said that the factory, which will be constructed by the AIBGA at a cost of 200,000 euros with funding from the European Union, will process up to 50,000 pounds of banana and plantain weekly.

In addition to chips, he said, the factory will also produce flour, pancake mixes and juices and will provide direct employment for 24 people.

Minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, J C Hutchinson, commended AIBGA on its initiative and reiterated the importance of Jamaica increasing value chain production, stating that “to be competitive, we have to move up the value chain” and could no longer concentrate on producing only primary products.