Jamaica records increase in exports
JAMAICA’s food exports are on the up.
The country recorded a 3.2 per cent increase in exports for the January to November period last year when compared to the previous year, moving from US$107 million in 2008 to US$111 million in 2009.
Export Business Development and Information Services Officer at the Jamaica Exporters’ Association (JEA) Royce Britton pointed out that ackee exports increased by 53 per cent over the period, moving from US$8.3 million in 2008 to US$12.8 million in 2009.
He also noted that Jamaica’s overall imports from its Caribbean Community (Caricom) neighbours fell from US$865 million in 2008 to US$678 million in 2009 and explained that the reason for that was a reduction in the fuel
import bill.
Britton said that for the similar period, exports to Caricom grew from US$61.1 million to US$62.8 million.
Meantime, the JEA’s Vice president, Michael Ming, is urging the Government to review its no-waiver policy for the importation of raw material for the agro-processing sector.
He argued that the policy has resulted in a loss of markets, since exporters are not able to obtain waivers for the importation of raw materials when local supplies are unavailable or are inadequate to meet production demands.
“We are asking that a policy be implemented that whenever there is a shortage, a verified shortage of whatever the agricultural raw material, processors can have access to a permit,” Ming said.
“The Ministry of Agriculture has all the extension officers out there and they will be able to identify what is short, from what is not. But the time that it is taking now for them to do the verification, which is anywhere between one and two months, we lose a significant amount of sales because of that.”
