NINETY-EIGHT-YEAR-OLD Pearlina Cunningham, her sister 89-year-old Francis Brown, and her daughter 79-year-old Hazelyn Nesbeth have been contributing to Jamaica’s food security and the local economy for decades.

Their longevity is proof that farming is more than just a job; it’s a long-standing commitment and a way of life that does not have a set retirement age.

Cunningham, who resides in Logwood, Hanover, told JIS News that she followed in the footsteps of her parents.

“I am farming from around 12 years old, because I usually go to the farm with my mother… I started farming from there and I never stopped,” she said proudly.

The family matriarch related that in her heyday she supplied major hotels like Hedonism and Grand Lido in Negril with crops such as plantains, bananas, cabbage, pak choi, cucumbers, and tomatoes.

She also grew sugar cane, which was sold to factories for processing into sugar and other by-products.

The mother of 13 emphasised that farming allowed her to care for her children and maintain her independence after her husband passed.

While she is no longer able to undertake farming on a large scale, the 98-year-old continues to rear broiler chickens to maintain her independence.

Her 79-year-old daughter, however, is continuing the family business, cultivating crops such as onions, cabbage, sweet potatoes, callaloo, dasheen, and watermelons.

Nesbeth shared that agricultural work has helped her to remain fit and healthy as she ages.

“When I sit down one place, sometimes when I get up it’s [a lot of] pain but when you move about, exercise, it helps you so much,” she pointed out.

The 79-year-old emphasised that farming is an important part of the economy as she urged young people not to overlook opportunities in agriculture.

“I believe one of the best professions in life is farming because none of us can live without food…teachers and farmers… oh, [they are] awesome. They provide education and food for the nation,” she maintained.

Nesbeth, who is mother to four children, noted that her daughter is also keen on continuing the family legacy in farming.

“There are a lot of young women who do not like their hands to touch the soil, but I would tell anyone that farming makes you independent. Leaving your home, going to the farm, you can come back with something to sell — [and that’s] even better than you going out to seek an employment,” she stated emphatically.

Her advice is echoed by the family matriarch who emphasised that farming is just as lucrative as other fields.

“Farming is better than even going abroad. If you farm in Jamaica, you can achieve as much money as going to a foreign country,” Cunningham maintained.

Jamaica Network of Rural Women Producers (JNRWP) President Tamisha Lee said that Cunningham and her family are “the living, breathing blueprints of national food security”.

“They demonstrate that the foundation of our nation’s resilience is built on the sweat equity and unbreakable spirit of the rural woman. They have fed their families, they have educated their children, and they continue to feed Jamaica,” she maintained.

Lee said that the women’s longevity in farming is proof that investment in rural women is the most reliable investment that stakeholders can make in their future.

As the nation observed International Day of Rural Women (IDRW) last Wednesday, the JNRWP hailed rural women as the backbone of Jamaica’s food system and the front line against the climate crisis.

“While we mark this important day, our focus is firmly on the critical intersection of food production and climate change resilience,” Lee told
JIS News.

She hailed Jamaica’s rural women as the invisible heart of the agricultural sector, managing small farms, processing crops, marketing goods, and preserving the traditional knowledge that sustains domestic food security.

She pointed out that while farming is undoubtedly lucrative, for many rural women there are significant challenges faced, which is why the JNRWP is calling for greater investment in rural women in agriculture.

Lee explained that despite their indispensable work, female farmers are disproportionately vulnerable to droughts, floods, and volatile weather patterns linked to climate change.

She maintained that investing in rural women is the single most effective investment in the nation’s climate mitigation and food system stability.

“When a woman farmer has security, her community has food security. When she receives climate-smart training, her land is protected, and her harvest is secured. The power of investment is transformative, allowing us to move from simply surviving climate shocks to actively building resilient, sustainable food systems for the future,” Lee insisted.

She is proposing a fund to provide climate-smart technology, water-harvesting systems, and drought-resistant seeds directly to women-led farms, and for the regularisation of land tenure for women in agriculture to be expedited, recognising that land ownership is the key that unlocks access to formal loans and long-term, sustainable investments in the soil.

Meanwhile, the Government is taking steps to ensure that women and young people play a central role in Jamaica’s agricultural transformation.

Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Floyd Green said that a quarter of all new agro-park lands will be specially allocated to these groups.

“In all of those agro-parks we’re going to make special accommodation for youth and for women, so 25 per cent of all of those lands are especially earmarked for women and for young people to access on special terms,” he noted.

He added that the Government will also reduce lease rates to make it easier for new entrepreneurs to establish thriving enterprises, adding that investments are being made in irrigation, storage facilities, and processing plants.

— JIS News