The Agriculture Ministry has indicated that Jamaica is not yet in a position to grow enough red peas to match consumption so imports will continue.
Last year, the country imported roughly one billion dollars worth of red peas.
This has upset many local players who argue that the country should be able to produce enough of the commodity.
However, Permanent Secretary in the Agriculture Ministry, Donovan Stanberry, states that this is unlikely to change soon.
He pointed to Jamaica’s legal obligations plus the efficiency of other countries in growing red peas:
Mr. Stanberry said “the real issue with read peas is that we are part and parcel of a CARICOM trading arrangement and most imports in fact comes in from Belize duty free based on the CARICOM agreement and we just have to be objective. We cannot compete with Belize given to the scale of red peas production given the level of mechanisation in Belize.
Data obtained by the RJR News Centre reveal that 85 percent of the peas used in Jamaica is imported.
Meanwhile Mr Stanberry says the production of red peas in Jamaica is increasing annually but there are vital changes needed if the country is to compete successfully:
He said “we have 220 farmers, most of whom operate on a small acreage. To get our costs down we would have to plant red pease on large acreages that are mechanized and it is in that context why the development of the Agro park is critical because what the Agro parks allow us to do is be able to engage large acreage that would give us the type of economy of scale.
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Jamaica can"t compete with Belize in red peas production
