Mount Airy coffee farmers rush harvesting ahead of storm

The approaching Tropical Storm Melissa has forced coffee farmers in Mount Airy, St Andrew, to speed up the harvesting of their coffee cherries in an attempt to minimise potential damage from the weather system.

“We pick off what we can pick off for now,” Naldy Dennis, a 39-year-old farmer from the community, told The Gleaner on Thursday.

He noted that it was already the picking season, and while the coffee yield on his two farms – covering about 20 acres – was still abundant, he managed to gather seven boxes, valued at approximately $70,000, just yesterday.

“We just gwaan hope seh it (storm) nuh come ‘cause di mount a coffee weh de pon tree now. If breeze blow off everything now, [we’re going to suffer] big, big losses.”

BOUNCING BACK FROM BERYL

He recalled suffering $3 million worth of damage from Hurricane Beryl last July, which affected not only his coffee crops but also bananas, plantains, and other cash crops.

Dennis also expressed frustration at the lack of support he received from government agencies in recovering from last year’s devastation.

“It come in like nobody nuh recognise coffee farmer because as a coffee farmer, you cya really call pon di Government if yuh get damage fi reimburse or something like dat. Jamaica have a number-one product - coffee - but it nah benefit the farmers,” he said.

Donovan Edwards, another local farmer, echoed Dennis’ concerns, having managed to pick one box of coffee to sell to traders despite minimal help. He, too, is worried about the storm’s potential effects on his two and a half acre farm.

“Di amount a ting deh pon di tree dem ya now – banana, coffee, … ,” he told The Gleaner, his voice trailing off at the thought.

The Meteorological Service of Jamaica has warned that Tropical Storm Melissa is still developing and could strengthen into a major hurricane as it moves south of Jamaica this weekend. While the storm has been slow-moving, it showed a slight increase in speed yesterday and continues to move through the central Caribbean. The system is expected to bring heavy rainfall, which, combined with already wet conditions, could trigger localised flooding and landslides, especially in flood-prone areas. Strong winds are also anticipated through the weekend.

Elvis Simpson, a 61-year-old farmer, expressed concern about the storm’s strong winds potentially uprooting his banana and plantain trees. He recalled the more than $100,000 in damage Hurricane Beryl caused on his farm last year, and he is very pleased with his recovery.

“Mi cya afford fi dis happen this year,” he told The Gleaner.

While there is little he can do to prevent the storm’s impact, Simpson, who was resting outside a local shop on his way home from his farm, said he planned to secure his home by reinforcing his zinc roof and windows in preparation for Melissa.

However, Milton Webb, another community member, wasn’t as worried.

“Mi nuh do nothing at all. All now I don’t even lift a straw ‘cause mi know seh rain a come, and which part mi live a pon hillside, so no water nah wash wi weh. And wi have banana and plantain,” he said.

Meanwhile, Donna Ferguson, a local shopkeeper, said she was waiting for her husband to return from the farm before beginning her own preparations. She expressed concerns about the storm’s potential to block roads, flood chicken coops, and trigger landslides, further worsening the already deteriorating condition of the main roads in the rural community.

“As you can see, our road is already bad, so it’s going to be worse, and some of us roof not good, so we haffi just pray for the best,” she said.

sashana.small@gleanerjm.com