Farmers Urged to Take Advantage of Support to Redevelop Pastures

Local dairy farmers are being urged to take advantage of support available from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining to redevelop pastures and, ultimately, improve their yield.

Speaking recently during the launch of the Heifer Redistribution Programme at Serge Island Dairies in St. Thomas, Portfolio Minister, Hon. Floyd Green, said that in order for dairy farmers to be able to milk their cows up to three times daily, conditions such as nutrition of the animals must be suitable.

“That is why we, through the Jamaica Dairy Development Board (JDDB), are on a drive to help our farmers with their pasture redevelopment. Farmers, if you are in need of the development of pastures, please reach out to us. We will provide that support free of cost to you,” the Minister said.

“Come in. Once you have the land [we will] provide you with the seeds, provide you with the land preparation, so that you can have the nutritional regime to truly serve our animals,” he added.

In dairy farming, a pasture is an enclosed area of land used for feeding livestock. It is planted with a mixture of forage crops to provide lactating cows with a nutritious, natural diet. This promotes herd health and high-quality milk production.

With the vagaries of climate change, Mr. Green reasoned, further, that “cow comfort” is something that farmers must strive for to grow the industry.

He outlined other initiatives of the Ministry aimed at making the animals more comfortable and bolstering farmers’ yield.

“We’ve been working with our smaller farmers to redevelop their barns to ensure that they have better conditions under which the cows are maintained to drive the productivity,” Mr. Green said.

The Heifer Redistribution Programme is an initiative of the JDDB. During the launch event, 400 pregnant heifers were handed over to local dairy farmers to rebuild the national herd, boost milk production and strengthen the long-term resilience of the dairy industry following Hurricane Melissa.