Rasbert Turner, Gleaner Writer
Bee farmer Kwesi Palmer.
SPANISH TOWN, St. Catherine:
BORN IN Kingston where he attended Calabar and Meadowbrook high schools, Kwesi Palmer realised from early that he wanted to make an impact on the agriculture sector.
He went about formulating his dream by attending the College of Agriculture Science and Education (CASE) where he pursued an associate degree in general agriculture and a bachelor's degree in agricultural production and food system management. After attending college he launched out into the field of farming, growing cash crops. But he realised that he could do more than just planting crops so he applied to the Ministry of Agriculture for enrolment in the beekeeping apprenticeship programme.
"I entered the programme because I realised that outside of just honey there is a great diversity of products that can be taken from bees production, those medicinal, nutritional and those used in (making) cosmetics," he told The Gleaner. "Overall I realised that it has great financial viability," he added.
BEES AND EQUIPMENT
Mr. Palmer said that as a result of being trained by the Apiculture Division of the Ministry of Agriculture he was given ten boxes of bees along with equipment, and with the learning guide that he has had he knows he will make the best use of the opportunity given.
Outside of farming the 25-year-old agriculturalist is a technical writer for HEART in the development of learning guide in agriculture and also does technical evaluation for the institution. He described himself as an agriculturist, food nutritionist and entrepreneur. According to him, gone are the days when farming was seen as menial labour, it takes a lot of learning to be adept with the modern facilities that are now available to farmers. Mr. Palmer said he intends to take farming to a new level.
