JP adds pineapples to portfolio as banana export declines
Published:Saturday | September 3, 2011 | 12:00 AM
Christopher Serju, Gleaner Writer
WHILE JAMAICA Producers (JP) has not closed the door on resuming exports of banana, the significant increase in production costs since the company ceased exporting the fruit to the United Kingdom in 2008 has forced a review of its operations.
"If you look back at banana prices in the last eight to nine months worldwide, even in this hemisphere, they have gone up substantially, by around 50 per cent", Rolf Simmonds director of commercial operations told The Gleaner.
He was speaking recently during an inspection of a batch of bananas by a dog and handler from the police canine division, as well as a member of the Quarantine Division, prior to shipment for Cayman at the AMC Complex on Spanish Town Road, Kingston.
"Not at this time, no because our costs are much higher," he said when asked about the chance of a resumption of exports to traditional markers anytime soon. Fertilizer, labour and energy were among the costs which had shot up over the past five years, according to Simmonds.
Describing the Cayman project as "very much in the pilot phase", he said today's harsh economic reality had prompted a culture change in terms of how the company sees banana, which can no longer be viewed as a silver bullet to drive long-term growth.
"We have to see if the price-to-cost ratio allows us a reasonable margin to actually build a business around. Using banana as the only thing to ship abroad, that day is dead!" declared Simmonds. "We're now also doing pineapples, because I think we now have to look at what portfolio of produce we can develop in terms of creating a viable long-term business that helps us balance out and spread the cost of doing business across a variety at difference price points."
Impressive quality
Meanwhile, JP's Planning Manager Garth Pearce said the Caymanians are very impressed with the quality of Jamaican bananas in comparison to what they had been getting from South America. Though shipped through Florida the produce was taking a week and a half to two weeks to reach Cayman, while out of Jamaica it takes a maximum of two days.
"This shipment goes directly. It was cut off the tree yesterday, palleted, brought here this morning and goes on the container same time. So [it was] packed and ready for shipment within 24 hours of being reaped," Pearce told The Gleaner.
The Cayman exports are the result of at least a year of negotiations and a course of checks and balances, according to Simmonds.
Said he: "It required inspections from both sides and they also had to come over here and inspect our farms and as expected, we were able to satisfy all the requirements, as we still maintain the highest standards in anywhere probably in the Caribbean, so from that standpoint we passed with flying colours."