KINGSTON, Jamaica – Jamaica is among 10 countries that will benefit from a multi-million dollar grant from the United States to improve the spice industry here.
Agriculture Minister , Pearnel Charles Jr., in talks with US Ambassador to Jamaica, Nick Perry.US Ambassador to Jamaica, Nick Perry, who met with Agriculture and Fisheries Minister, Pearnel Charles Jr., said the US$20 million grant over a five-year period, will benefit Jamaican small farmers and that the many health benefits of turmeric and ginger are amongst the reasons for the demand.
The grant will be disbursed under the ‘Food for Progress’ program and comes against the background of exponential growth of the spice industry in the US, especially as it concerns ginger, turmeric and pimento.
The initiative will, therefore, target the marketing and development of products, such as packaging and will promote sustainable and climate-friendly farming to yield best results.
“The health food industry in the United States is certainly looking for imports that will feed into the demand. I am sure that this will be a good investment for the United States and for Jamaican farmers to benefit from our relationship,” Perry said.
The Agriculture Minister in welcoming the grant adding that the rationale behind it ties into the national ‘Grow Smart, Eat Smart’ campaign.
“It’s a campaign to connect the thinking around greater efficiencies in agricultural operation and the strategic and deliberate consumption of products that are going to be more nutritious, particularly at a time when we are trying to achieve food security, so the ‘Grow Smart, Eat Smart’ [movement] really embraces this grant,” he said.
