Bridging gap between research and farming

Centre of excellence to improve productivity, says Tufton
Ross SheilM Online Co-ordinator rsheil@jamaicaobserver.com

JAMAICA. Jamaica Observer - Kingston, Oct.15, 2008

Cassava flour is being piloted as a 20 per cent flour substitute in Nutribuns in conjunction with the Ministry of Education with the initial response being favourable, he reported. He said that Jamaica Flour Mills have expressed a willingness to use cassava to provide 15 per cent of its flour, dependent on reliable supply - he added that at current levels of productivity cassava is yielding 7 tonnes per acre but that this could be raised to 20 tonnes.


State Minister in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Michael Stern (right) listens keenly to Minister of Agriculture, Dr Christopher Tufton at the opening ceremony for a week-long agricultural science and technology workshop held at the Hilton Hotel in New Kingston Monday, organised by the Scientific Research Council (SRC), the National Council for Science and Technology (NCST) and the African Caribbean and Pacific Countries (ACP)-European Union (EU) Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation.

Agriculture Minister Christopher Tufton says that a Centre of Excellence for the sector, scheduled to launch early next year, will help train farmers islandwide in up-to-date best practice and technology to boost production, which has fallen by 30 per cent in the past 15 years, and hence domestic food security.

Headed by former World Bank agricultural economist Wayne Henry, and now special advisor to the minister, the centre has been promised funds of US$3 million by the Spanish government. Henry will have responsibility for co-ordinating with the various bodies carrying out agricultural research and education.

The centre will be based at the ministry's existing facility in Bodels, St Catherine, which is being refurbished for the purpose and two satellites: A greenhouse project in Coleyville, Manchester and ruminants (sheep and goats) in Hounslow, South St Elizabeth.

"The farming community doesn't benefit from a study! It benefits from a practical application of the study to improve its techniques in the field. One of the things we want to do is to have a body that co-ordinates all existing studies and develop a training agenda that is practical and implemented out of the findings of those studies and train farmers in the field to implement those best practices, so we can advance the agenda of improving production and productivity levels," Tufton told an audience at the opening ceremony for a week-long agricultural science and technology workshop. The Workshop was held at the Hilton Hotel in New Kingston Monday, and organised by the Scientific Research Council (SRC), the National Council for Science and Technology (NCST), and the African Caribbean and Pacific Countries (ACP)- European Union (EU) Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation.

He said that the current world economic situation and concern over food security presented an opportunity for Caribbean agriculture, a sentiment shared by his special advisor.

"It's a tremendous vision and the potential for the country is there, there are a lot of able people involved and there is a lot of initiative as well. We have this window of opportunity with the concern of food security and with the support of international partners and locally interest in agriculture is resurgent. But we don't know how long this window is going to last for and there is a lot of work that needs to be done," Henry told the Business Observer.

Jamaica currently chairs the Caricom Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) on agriculture, which convened in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines last week. Tufton said that there was a growing realisation among Caricom countries that imports need to be substituted for increased local production.

"Out of those discussions it was quite clear that as a region there is a recognition of a need to refocus our attention towards rebuilding our agricultural capacity.

Territories within the region that once saw their salvation coming from services - Jamaica included, from tourism, from fossil fuels in the case of a Trinidad and Tobago - and so food or the sourcing of food coming primarily from trading with other countries are now rethinking that mode because of the developments that have occurred over time," he said.

The resulting communiqué to CARICOM heads of governments included: Recognition of common commodities to sustain local demand; greater investigation of thd potential for biofuels that do not conflict with existing food profduction; the establishment of local research bodies and an agricultural development fund to be financed from import levies; and a recommendations that 25 per cent of feedstock be locally produced.

"We need to put a system in place that says if we gave 100 per cent import duty concessions to corn imports, which we currently do coming into the country, apply a five per cent duty and take that five per cent put in a pool and give it to our farmers so that they can grow... Those who oppose that process claim expense to the consumer but the truth of the matter is, sometimes I believe this is an excuse, and it maybe a small price to pay for building out our capacity."

Cassava flour is being piloted as a 20 per cent flour substitute in Nutribuns in conjunction with the Ministry of Education with the initial response being favourable, he reported. He said that Jamaica Flour Mills have expressed a willingness to use cassava to provide 15 per cent of its flour, dependent on reliable supply - he added that at current levels of productivity cassava is yielding 7 tonnes per acre but that this could be raised to 20 tonnes.

"The point is that there are alternative options out there. It is for us to identify them and to tap into them and to develop business models, supported by research and development that is going to provide those options, which - in effect - will allow us to determine our destiny rather being overly dependent on others to supply us."

The Ministry is continuing to employ more extension officers with the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) with 20 starting work this week and plans to recruit another 40, he said. Meanwhile, the Ministry is conducting two studies into soil nutrition and disease to better inform farmers in addition to best practice research into 12 crops including carrots, ginger and yams.

He said that the Ministry would also continue to work closely with farmers via the Producing Marketing Organisations (PMOs) of which there are 400 groups of farmers registered with RADA, following their revival last year.

"We are going to be working through those groups. On deciding that we are targeting a particular crop, we need to go in and train those farmers what are the best practices in growing those crops and work with them in finding those markets."