Egg farmers assure of adequate supplies for Christmas

President of the Jamaica Egg Farmers Association, Mark Campbell, is seeking to assure that there will be an adequate supply of eggs for the upcoming Christmas season.

"We have had no Covid-19, no Beryl, and traditional egg farmers have had their full supply of pullets. The pullets which took five months before they start laying are now ready for peak production," said Campbell.

Eldon Kerr, a Trelawny egg farmer, confirmed Campbell's prediction.

"I am all right, my stock has been replenished, and I am ready to start picking up eggs," Kerr said

Campbell had a word for consumers. "This might sound like a plug for egg sales, but I want to inform you that an egg is the cheapest form of protein."

Latoya Parkinson, a dietitian at Falmouth Hospital, agreed with Campbell but added, "Though an egg has good protein value, one should not indulge in eating too many as it may cause the cholesterol level to rise."

Thousands of layers were lost during Hurricane Beryl last year July, and those that survived were not very productive as they were said to be showing signs of stress.

The country struggled with a shortage of eggs during the last Christmas season when the demand for the product increased. In May, the supply of approximately 650,000 eggs per day was just barely keeping up with the demand.

However, Campbell had said then that between 600,000 and 700,000 new birds would be brought into the system by November.

- Leon Jackson

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