As reported by Floyd Green, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, the Jamaican government will be spending $150 million to increase Irish potato production and $80 million to assist onion farmers as part of its strategy to boost the yield of specific crops, to ensure food security. The Minister said that one of the objectives is to increase Irish potato production by 20 tons per hectare over the 2023 to 2024 period. “We are going to use that $150 million, plus the support from our various partners, to establish nine validation plots, because we have to enhance our training programmes,” the Minister said.
Green told his audience that Irish potato and onion development has been part of the Ministry’s priority program for a long time, because they contribute directly towards assisting more than 70,000 farmers and direct/indirect employment creation for more than 350,000 Jamaicans.
Source: jis.gov.jm