Analee Bernard, Gleaner Writer

BLACK RIVER, St. Elizabeth:

The first set of products from a St. Elizabeth-based flavour extraction plant has been sent to Germany for testing. The crops used in the initial flavour extraction exercise included watermelon, lemon grass, fever grass, scallion, sorrel and fruits such as guava and mango.

Seymore Simpson, board member of the St. Elizabeth/Manchester Vegetable Growers' Association, says he is expecting that the tests will indicate that the products are of high standards. And in that event, he said, the association would begin to process other fruits and vegetables.

Viable production

The flavour extraction plant is capable of utilising all sections of produce for economical and viable products such as fruit juices, essence, purée and paste. The St. Elizabeth/Manchester Vegetable Growers' Association has been working on the flavour extraction project for the past five years.

In his recent budget presentation, Commerce Minister Phillip Paulwell said markets had already been identified in Europe, Japan and the United States for the flavour-extracted products.

It is expected that tomatoes, bananas, carrots and naseberries will also explored.

President of the St. Elizabeth/Manchester Vegetable Growers' Association, Anthony Freckleton, who sealed a flavour extraction deal in Australia in February, said that a reliable market with consistent prices would help to deal with the issue of glut, which has long been a sore issue for farmers in south St. Elizabeth.