FOR CANE farmers and hundreds of families in rural communities across the country, the growth of the sugar industry is very critical, as their livelihood depend on the economic benefits which flow from the sector.
The industry, which has suffered major setbacks over the last few years, is now fighting to regain ground.
But, while the farmers are renewing their efforts to push the sector forward, the long-standing problem of stray animals continue to plague the industry, destroying crops and leaving behind losses amounting to millions of dollars. This has left cane farmers angry and they want an urgent solution to the problem.
Their story is not unique, as banana, vegetable and other cash crop farmers are also suffering from the same problem. Motorists also have to contend with stray animals on the roads, and in some instances, drivers have been killed in accidents with these animals.
The countless appeals for help from the farmers and other concerned citizens are currently receiving attention, as the Ministry of Local Government, Youth and Community Development is reporting that an Inter-agency Committee is meeting to develop new proposals for the effective control and management of stray animals.
The Ministry of Local Government is also working with Parish Councils to ensure that there is at least one operational pound in each parish. There are four operational pounds in Kingston and St. Andrew, St. Ann, St. Thomas and Clarendon.
Chairman of the All Island Cane Farmers Association, Abijah Buchanan, condemned some cattle farmers for allowing their animals to roam freely in cane fields, destroying crops over the last two years amounting to more than $250 million.
He explained that the small cane farmer suffers most because "if you are a poor man with your little farm and you catch the cow, you'll have to pay $10,000 to $12,000 to send it to the animal pound". After this is done, there is no compensation to the farmer, he pointed out.
Mr. Buchanan told the Government's news agency, Jampress, in an interview, that many cane farmers have purchased barbed wires to keep the animals out of their fields, but this has not helped, as the wires are allegedly cut by cattle farmers during the dry season to allow their animals to feed on the plants.
Repeal the law
Mr. Buchanan called on the authorities to amend or repeal the law so as to permit farmers to shoot cattle which have trespassed on their properties, the same way they are allowed to shoot goats and pigs.
At the Sugar Company of Jamaica (SCJ), Monymusk Division in Clarendon, the company lost an estimated $193 million between 1997 and 1999, when 300 hectares of land, which should have yielded 7,680 tons of cane (768 tons of sugar), suffered from 'crop retardation' due to stray animals.
Tackle the problem
Efforts are under way at the company to tackle the problem through greater worker participation, community outreach programmes and the establishment of a pound on the property. The company, over the last six months, has also increased security presence in the fields, especially at nights.
The security supervisor states that it is costing the company approximately $32,000 per fortnight to catch cattle feeding in Monymusk cane fields, as extra guards have been recruited to work at nights.
Meanwhile, Monymusk has introduced other measures to deal with stray cattle. An agreement signed between the company and the Clarendon Parish Council in January this year, gives it permission to establish and maintain a pound on its property. Since that time an average of 25 cows are impounded per day.
In St. Thomas, the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) Parish Manager, Caswell Glover, said vegetable farmers in the Morant Bay area are under siege from stray cattle which have destroyed their crops. The farmers, he said, have lost over $500,000.
Additionally, he pointed out that scores of banana, plantain, and yam farmers have suffered losses amounting to thousands of dollars, resulting from cattle feeding on their crops.
However, the parish manager said the stray cattle problem did not emerge overnight, pointing to a nexus between the importation of cheap beef and the significant reduction in the demand for local beef, which has resulted in some farmers abandoning their cattle.
He explained that many cattle farmers cannot sell their animals and as their stocks multiply, there is insufficient land space to contain them. Further, he said the farmers are also faced with the challenge of feeding their cattle during periods of drought.
