Councillor of the Maroon Town Division and Chairman of the Finance Committee at the St. James Municipal Corporation, Everes Coke, is encouraging the St. James Association of Branch Societies of the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS) to launch an aggressive programme aimed at taking advantage of the value added opportunities to be gained from agro-processing.
Speaking at the JAS’s Annual General Meeting held at the Roger Clarke Exhibition/ Conference Centre at the Montpelier Show Grounds on Wednesday, June 15, 2022, Councillor Coke, who was bringing greetings on behalf of Mayor of Montego Bay, Leeroy Williams, urged farmers to consider the benefits of the lucrative agro-processing market.
“It is my firm belief that the agro-processing sector can play a major role in realizing Jamaica’s economic independence and bring wealth to our farmers in the parish,” stated Councillor Coke.
While highlighting his admiration for farmers from the parish, Councillor Coke opined that “this parish has been producing more than its fair share of agricultural products, and when it is sold on the local market and to the hotel industry, our farmers gain some wealth. However, the true value of your produce can only be revealed when value is added.”
THINK BIG: Councillor of the Maroon Town division and Chairman of the Finance Committee at the St. James Municipal Corporation, Everes Coke (left), makes a point encouraging agro-processing while addressing the St. James Association of Branch Societies (ABS) of the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS) Annual General Meeting (AGM) held at the Roger Clarke Exhibition/ Conference Centre at the Montpelier Show Grounds on Wednesday, June 15, 2022. Also shown are Custos Rotulorum of St. James, Honourable Conrad Pitkin (seated right) and Secretary of the St. James JAS, Lorna Clarke.
Championing the need for the parish’s farmers to consider moving on to the next level of earning from all areas of agriculture, Councillor Coke posited that the ‘time has come for the farmers of St. James to start working smarter…not harder.’
“We have come a far way in terms of improving the farming technology, the varieties of crops that are planted, improving our reaping processes and even our marketing strategies. We must now move to the next level of earning, particularly from the largely untapped value-added agro-processing sector.”
Also in attendance at the St. James JAS AGM were Custos Rotulorum of St. James, Honourable Conrad Pitkin, President of the JAS St. James ABS, Glendon Harris, Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) Parish Agriculture Manager, Recorgo Holt, JAS Parish Manager, Shanakay Yee and President of the Small Ruminants Association, Trevor Bernard.
The event also featured the election of a new executive, which saw the return of Glendon Harris as President. Additional elected members of the executive include 1st Vice President - Vivian Douglas , 2nd VP - Alfred Tomlinson, Treasurer - Samuel Johnson, Secretary - Lorna Clarke, Assistant Secretary - Sharon Jones, and executive members Pauline Downer, Gersham Brooks, Clover Record and Myrtle Kerr.