Slavery and colonial legacies institutionalised food and earth minerals as sovereign assets of the colonisers. These resources were not treated as belonging to their countries of origin; instead, the supporting systems, education, and consumption patterns became entrenched in the colonies.

During the colonial period, the introduction of technologies secured economic independence — including food sovereignty — for the planter class, predominantly citizens of European countries. To meet European demand for tropical foods, spices, tea, etc, colonial governments provided basic food security and accommodation to the enslaved and emancipated peoples. This was designed to optimise cheap labour and maximise agricultural exports.

From as early as the 17th century, technology was introduced to boost agricultural productivity. In 1844, railway services commenced in Jamaica to transport goods from fields to markets, ports, and factories. Intra-island communication was vital for productivity: the Postal Service was established in 1671, followed by The Gleaner Company (1834), both pivotal to national development. Each has undergone significant administrative and technological evolution.

Radio, television, and Internet services later entered the agricultural landscape with positive impacts, improving accessibility for farmers. In 2012, Jamaica, Cuba, and Venezuela jointly laid a submarine cable, enhancing regional business connectivity. Recently, Rural Agriculture Development Authority (RADA) launched the RADA Connect app, complementing the marketing app ALEX (Agricultural Linkage Exports), operated with the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF).

Jamaica’s technological capacity expanded with electricity generation (1892) and numerous wharves built to facilitate trade and logistics. Airport development further advanced logistics and communications, with three international airports and multiple domestic airstrips refining public services. It is inconceivable to hear calls for “technology in agriculture” when the sector fails to build on existing foundations. Instead, administrators conflate agrochemicals with technological innovation. Agriculture is declining rapidly, with falling production (2020–2024), labour shortages, inadequate irrigation, unresponsive research, and underfunding. These issues were less severe at the turn of the century, yet farmers’ pleas for technology remain unanswered, despite accessible solutions.

Arable lands once dedicated to crops and livestock are now housing estates, plazas, and urban developments — permanently lost to food production. This skews the food basket towards imports, destabilises currency, and worsens food insecurity. Clearly, the agricultural crisis stems from poor management and neglect, not solely a lack of technology or mechanisation.

The College of Agriculture, Science and Education (CASE) — successor to the Farm School and Jamaica School of Agriculture (JSA, est 1910) — boasts 115 years of acclaimed research in crop varieties and livestock breeds. JSA relocated to Pasley Garden, Portland, in 1982 and became CASE. But does this legacy thrive today? Shouldn’t technology and research be pivotal in shifting the food basket towards local produce?

While CASE deserves credit for its annual Research Day, what applicable findings or technologies have tangibly benefited agriculture? CASE promotes drone technology as novel, though it has existed since 1934. How frequently is it deployed to improve productivity?

Technology must not be abstract, unaffordable, or inaccessible. Yet farmers struggle to hire/lease tillage equipment, chainsaws, hole diggers, or tractors. The Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) is tasked with providing affordable technology to farmers, but is this happening? If not, what is the future plan?

In a recent sectoral presentation, the minister promised tractors for every agro-park, RADA, irrigation scheme, storage facility, and farm road — potentially bolstering technological access.

Historical innovations, like field cables in 1990s banana farming (reducing labour during transport to packing stations) or efficient field layouts, retain value. These could be adapted for coffee, yams, pineapples, melons, etc to cut labour and post-harvest losses.

Fruit trees (coconuts, breadfruit, ackee, etc) should be organised in orchards to enable efficient pruning and equipment-assisted harvesting — replacing today’s haphazard, labour-intensive methods. This underscores the need for research into varieties suited to mechanisation.

Such operations could integrate with municipal market storage, packaging, and washing sites — enabling technology transfer (weighing, labelling, packaging) and facilitating domestic/export marketing.

Food sovereignty will remain elusive if production factors evade farmers. Food security cannot be guaranteed while government agencies remain out of step with technology and modern practices.

Lenworth Fulton is a past president of Jamaica Agricultural Society.

Lenworth Fulton.