Agro-processors start to rebuild and recover
Agro-processing companies operating huge farms in the country are reporting extensive damage to their crops, with at least one, Jamaica Producers, saying it has lost most of its banana plants and warns of shortages over the next few months.
Jeffrey Hall, CEO of Jamaica Producers Group, told the Jamaica Observer in an interview Thursday that over 90 per cent of the banana crops at the company’s St Mary farm was destroyed.
“It’s an industry-wide catastrophe,” Hall pointed out. Jamaica Producers is the largest exporter of bananas in the English-speaking Caribbean and operates farms in Jamaica.
Hall said in St Mary, over 300 acres of bananas were affected by the rain and wind as the outer bands of hurricane Beryl lashed the island on Wednesday. He said an estimate of the damage is yet to be collated, but noted that with the almost total loss of the banana crop at its St Mary, Jamaica, farm, consumers will see shortages of the fruit in the next six to eight months.
Hall however assured that JP Farms is committed to a swift recovery, and will be reinvesting and rebuilding to meet consumer demands.
“We are honoured that our team members return to work today (Thursday) and have already commenced the rebuilding of the farm. We have an outstanding team and dedicated leadership,” Hall told the BusinessWeek.
Another large processor with large acreage under crops, Trade Winds Citrus, the producer of the Tru-Juice brand of juices, said it suffered losses estimated at $20 million at its Bog Walk, St Catherine, farm due to Hurricane Beryl.
Managing Director Peter McConnell said approximately 30,000 to 40,000 pineapple plants were washed away and an additional 300,000 plants were flooded after a river nearby broke its banks. The impact was felt on only 25 acres of pineapple, though the company grows hundreds of acres of other crops, chiefly oranges.
“We’re working tirelessly to remove debris and treat the affected plants with fungicide to prevent disease,” McConnell told the BusinessWeek.
He however said the company’s factory, which is located at the farm, emerged unscathed from the impact of the hurricane. Still, employees at the factory are not expected to return to work until Monday while deliveries are scheduled to restart today, albeit only to areas with cleared roadways. For now the company is also focusing on helping the surrounding communities with the removal of debris.
