KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining has received a major boost for the agricultural sector’s recovery, with Newport-Fersan (Jamaica) Limited handing over $25 million worth of fertiliser to be distributed to severely affected farmers.

This follows the catastrophic impact on the sector by Hurricane Melissa on October 28.

During the handover ceremony on Thursday at Newport-Fersan’s headquarters in Kingston, Portfolio Minister Floyd Green lauded the fertiliser company as a “friend in every time”, highlighting its consistent and loyal partnership with the agricultural sector.

“Newport-Fersan has proven to be one of our most long-standing and loyal partners in the agricultural sector, and we all know that the agricultural sector is susceptible to these sorts of climatic events,” Green said.

He noted that this is the second major intervention by the company in as many years.

Last year following Hurricane Beryl, which caused $7 billion in damage, Newport-Fersan was among the first to step forward, offering $15 million in support.

Green pointed out that Hurricane Melissa was “the most catastrophic that we have seen to our sectors”, with the World Bank model suggesting up to $60 billion in losses for the agricultural and fisheries sectors.

The destruction across the sector includes a 100 per cent loss for the banana and plantain crops, about 70 per cent of yam and almost all of the country’s vegetable lines.

Additionally, over 1.1 million birds (layer chickens and broilers) died in the storm, and major damage has been seen in the fishery sector in terms of boats and fishing beaches.

The handover, which represents more than 7,000 bags of fertiliser, is even more timely, as it is a high-demand product that is required in this recovery phase from the hurricane.

“You can rest assured that Newport-Fersan is going to help, and that does provide a lot of confidence for us to move forward to engage our farmers. And you would have heard it — Newport-Fersan is donating something that, right now, every farmer is trying to put their hands on as a part of the recovery effort, and that is fertiliser,” Green said.

The minister also commended Newport-Fersan for its immediate community-focused assistance where they handed out care packages, including mattresses in the parishes that were significantly impacted by the hurricane.

Meanwhile, Managing Director of Newport-Fersan, Dennis Valdez, noted that the company is celebrating 20 years of operations in Jamaica, where it has contributed to strengthening and developing the country’s agricultural sector.

“It is, therefore, particularly meaningful that in this milestone year, we once again step forward in a moment of national need,” Valdez said.

He explained that the contribution of fertilisers is part of a broader $40-million relief package from the Fersan Group, which includes $9 million in direct support to farmers through outreach and technical programmes and $5 million in support to members of Fersan staff and families who were personally affected by the hurricane.

“This is not a symbolic gesture. This is partnership. This is national responsibility. This is our contribution to rebuilding the agricultural backbone of Jamaica,” Valdez said.

— JIS