Leaders in the micro, small and medium-sized enterprise (MSME) subsector are urging farmers to revise their modus operandi in order to realise maximum returns from agricultural activities.

While demanding that local entrepreneurs come with a bank of diverse business ideas during a recent Jamaica Observer Business Forum, MSME Alliance President Donovan Wignall, Small Business Association of Jamaica (SBAJ) director of membership Opal Levy and Young Entrepreneurs Association of Jamaica (YEA) President Cordell Williams Graham were asked if agriculture was a viable option for individuals considering entrepreneurship.

In response, they said entrepreneurs will need to approach farming with a different mindset than what currently obtains in the sector. They also argued that the time has come for small farmers to develop the business acumen needed to boost agricultural productivity while integrating new methodologies and technologies into farming practices given the impact of climate change and market forces.

Since 2018, farming as an economic activity has been incorporated into the Government of Jamaica’s Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises & Entrepreneurship Policy.

According to the policy, “Agriculture also provides raw material inputs into the agro-processing sector, providing enterprise and value-added opportunities for MSMEs. As a matter of national policy, agriculture will be treated as an industry grouping falling within the MSME categorisation.”

While underscoring the importance of agriculture to the Jamaican economy, Levy, however, noted, “We cannot continue to do agriculture the way we do agriculture. We live in a society where our climatic conditions are unpredictable, so we go through periods of drought, we go through periods of rainfall.

“We also have a space where our farmers are not businessmen, so what we find is that if people want to plant yam, they plant yam,” she continued.

According to the SBAJ director, the lack of coordination among farmers, and the haphazard way in which they approach agriculture, has resulted in periods of market glut and food wastage.

She shared “from experience” that some yam farmers hold onto their produce when there is a bounty, waiting for the price of the good to increase, only for the yams to spoil.

Levy also made the case for using greenhouses and freight farms to reduce the impact of extreme climate conditions, pests and diseases. Describing freight farming, she said, “…we actually buy containers and we convert them into infrastructure to grow vegetables demanded by hotels, [which] give us that consistent beautiful supply because they are not prone to insects and the weather conditions.

Moreover, she disclosed that the SBAJ had proposed to the Rural Agricultural Development Authority to engage in a “farm-to-firm” partnership with farmers.

“We haven’t gone anywhere with it but we continue to push for those persons who have that heart for the ecosystem. We continue to push to see how we can make a change,” she further explained.

For Williams Graham, while agriculture contributes to economic growth it suffers from low productivity. To this end, she argued that an “institutionalised approach” is needed to improve output from the sector.

“There is a concept — the mother farm concept — which goes back to the overarching need for an institutionalised approach…The mother farm concept provides capacity building for farmers by providing more training and also bringing together produce, helping with storage, and finding markets,” the YEA president stated.

Back in March, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries Pearnel Charles Jr revealed that his ministry will be seeking to expand the mother farm concept across the island to boost domestic crop production. He said the approach should assist farmers in sourcing ready markets to sell their produce and provide them with access to modern agriculture technology.

Additionally, through the mother farm approach, larger companies that are usually equipped with the technology, expertise, and investment capacity can provide extension services to smaller farmers in crop development.

Williams Graham noted that applying this approach will develop the institutional capacity the agriculture sector needs. She further argued that “we’re too reliant on international funding” and donor agencies rather than developing a localised approach to farming.

Wignall, for his part, drew a parallel between technology and agriculture.

“You have to look at farming like how you look at technology. Every new technology that is introduced has an end of life. I think our farming sector… has reached its end of life,” he stated.

On this note, he proposed that small farmers can engage in contract farming, similar to that between Jamaica Broilers and chicken farmers. He pointed out that for this model to work, large companies that have the engage in agro-processing can enter contractual arrangements with small farmers to purchase the produce and livestock.

However, like Levy, he believes that there needs to be more coordination among small farmers to see them mature into viable businesses.