Supply of farm produce will meet Christmas demand, says minister

By Lorraine Mendez   

 

Agriculture Minister Floyd Green is expressing optimism that there will be adequate supply of agricultural produce in the domestic market over the festive season, despite setbacks from recent heavy rains.

 

Speaking with Radio Jamaica News on Monday afternoon, Minister Green said farmers have been working overtime to ramp up production. 

 

"We have seen an uptick in production in relation to a number of our vegetable lines. We have seen some rebound in our leafy vegetables, and I have been paying key attention to the prices. We do have a team at the ministry that looks at our farm gate prices, and over the last few weeks, we have seen additional production numbers coming into the market space," he said. 

 

The minister commended farmers for "working overtime" to recover from the impact of heavy rains in October and November. 

 

He also noted that a number of farmers, especially in St. Elizabeth, had reaped crops prior to the rains on the weekend.