An Innovative IDEAS’
News Release
Contact: Carmen Patterson Tel: 906 4332 - 3 Fax: 906 4331 E-Mail:
Dateline: February 3, 2004
JAMAICA EXPORTED 108-THOUSAND DOZEN EGGS
TO TRINIDAD SINCE DECEMBER
Jamaica is now exporting eggs to Trinidad & Tobago. In an historic move, which began mid-December 2003, members of the Jamaica Egg Farmers Association have so far shipped 108,000 dozen eggs in four-40 ft. containers to the Trinidad Egg Farmers Association. And there are plans to export approximately five additional containers of eggs to the twin-island Republic over the next few months.
At the same time, the association is in negotiations with St. Lucia and Barbados to supply eggs to those destinations, while a Jamaican delegation is planning to visit Antigua and the Cayman Islands sometime next month to investigate the possibility of exporting eggs to those territories.
Jamaica Egg Services, a division of the Jamaica Broilers Group and the major supplier of replacement pullets to the table egg industry in Jamaica – facilitated the negotiations between representatives of the Trinidad and Jamaica Egg Farmers Associations. According to Norman Williams, General Manager of Jamaica Egg Services, the agreement to export eggs to Trinidad was reached within four weeks of the initial approach and followed a satisfactory tour by the Trinidadian counterparts of the facilities of egg farmers in Jamaica.
Mr. Williams explained that over the years, the local table egg industry had seen very little growth because the average local consumption rate had remained at less than 1 egg per person per week, or 45 eggs per person per year. This average rate, he said, included consumption in the tourist sector.
Against this background, he said that even over the Christmas Season – when the demand for eggs is usually at its peak in Jamaica – the egg farmers were able to adequately supply the local market and export the surplus of 108,000 dozens.
“The potential to export eggs to the Caribbean region has given the egg farmers hope in the future of their businesses and has opened up opportunities for expansion in the industry,” Mr. Williams added.
He went on to say that one of the mandates of the Jamaica Egg Farmers Association has been to increase the per capita consumption of eggs locally to drive production. But this growth has been slow in coming – resulting in periodic oversupply of eggs and low wholesale prices over the past six to seven years. On the other hand, input costs such as feed and labour have significantly increased, Mr. Williams explained.
“So in order to maintain operations and avoid lay-offs, we had to look outside of Jamaica for market opportunities to push volumes. The game plan is that, once we get sustained export orders, the industry can go into an expansion mode, resulting in more stable prices and production levels,” he said.