The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining is moving to increase the surveillance of agro parks through the introduction of technological aids, in a bid to heighten security. Portfolio Minister, Hon. Floyd Green, says plans are in place to utilise features such as geofencing and closed-circuit televisions (CCTVs). “That is something that we [have asked] to be brought forward coming into our new budget. We are definitely going to be looking throughout the agro parks that we already have established [to see] how can we heighten security measures there using the technology,” Mr. Green stated. He was speaking during the New FACE of food stakeholder engagement at the Terra Nova All-Suite Hotel in St. Andrew on Thursday (November 2). FACE is an acronym for Food Security, Agribusiness Development, Climate Smart Technologies and Export Expansion. Mr. Green said the utilisation of technology will support the focus being placed on the buildout of the parks. “Part of what we recognise is that [with] the buildout of the agro parks, we have to look at a more holistic approach. Unfortunately, we developed agro parks over the years… without irrigation supply, [and] we never looked at drainage. It was about putting in the land, and that means that in times of drought, the agro parks [were] not producing, which, your agro parks should be your resilient backbone,” he pointed out. The Minister said the technology is a bit more affordable than in previous years, noting that “it makes even having a big space easier to treat with”. Meanwhile, Mr. Green advised that the agriculture wardens programme is being strengthened. “We are pushing, on a national level, [for] our agriculture wardens programme to have more boots on the ground. Clearly, the agro parks would be one of the areas of focus because we already have a concentrated area of farmers,” he informed. Meanwhile, the Minister said amendments to the Agricultural Produce Act will be tabled in the House of Representatives before the end of November, to increase penalties associated with the legislation. “We have spoken about it for years. But I do expect, before the end of this month, that I will table amendments to the Agricultural Produce Act in Parliament,” he said. The stakeholder engagement drive aimed to highlight the various investment opportunities in the sector and the initiatives in place to help farmers boost production.

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