INDUSTRY, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Audley Shaw says there is no ban in place on parrot fish.

At a post-sectoral debate press briefing at his Hope Gardens offices in St Andrew Wednesday, the minister said that extensive research and consultations have been undertaken with local and international experts to properly examine the issue.

Acknowledging the varied concerns expressed by lobby groups, the minister explained that “while there exists a correlation between reduced herbivory and degraded coral reef systems, there is no conclusive evidence that the consumption of parrot fish is the cause of the depletion of the coral reefs”.

“In addition to the fact that there is no scientific basis on which to impose a ban on parrot fish, it is (also) not practical to impose a ban on a single species in a multispecies fishery, without serious negative impact on some of our most vulnerable citizens,” he said.

Meanwhile, Shaw said a project will be piloted at the Oracabessa High School in St Mary by executive chef of the Jamaica Pegasus hotel, Mark Cole, who is a past student.

“Highly nutritious Jamaican foods will be used to feed those students instead of rice and flour,” the minister said.

Cole has been one of Jamaica’s foremost chefs for more than 20 years and has significantly transformed the island’s cuisine and the practice of the culinary arts.

– JIS