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Bartlett Challenges Farmers to Meet Tourism’s Demand for Agricultural Produce

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Jamaica Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, has challenged the local agricultural sector to make a greater effort to satisfy the demands of Jamaica’s tourism sector for fresh fruits, vegetables, meat and poultry.

“There is a symbiotic relationship between tourism and agriculture and Jamaica needs to do more to leverage that relationship to the benefit of the people. Agri-tourism is a vital part of the experiences that are marketed all across the globe and Jamaica has not done very well in building out agri-tourism as we understand it,” said Minister Bartlett.


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Speaking yesterday at the opening ceremony for the 67th staging of the Denbigh Agricultural, Industrial and Food Show in May Pen, Clarendon, the Tourism Minister said the demand for agricultural produce by the tourism sector is valued at some $40 billion dollars.  Of this, poultry, meats and seafood alone accounted for 75% of this total value, fruits accounted for another 10% and vegetables accounted for 6.4%.

“When we talk about poultry, we are getting into a new and expanded area of values because we are talking about eggs; we are talking about liquid eggs that are required. Would you believe, at any given hotel the average consumption for a visitor is exceeding five eggs a day? We have 4.5 million visitors coming to the island this year. Do the math,” the Tourism Minister said.

Jamaica Tourism Minister Challenges Farmers to Meet Tourism’s Demand for Agricultural Produce
Colonel Jamie O’Gilvie (right), Assistant Vice-President, Hi-Pro, and Tricia Jackson (2nd left), Store Operations, Hi-Pro, explain the concept behind the Hi-Pro wellness garden to Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett and the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary Jennifer Griffith during a tour of the company’s pavilion yesterday at the annual Denbigh Agricultural, Industrial and Food Show in May Pen, Clarendon.

“Eggs are one of the most ubiquitous of all the ingredients used in the various types of delectable food Jamaica provides.  We need eggs for everything, especially pastry. So you can add to that five eggs another quotient and you can see the volume of eggs required by the farmers of Jamaica to be produced just to satisfy the needs of the local tourism industry,” Minister Bartlett add.

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Local farmers were also encouraged to look beyond supplying the hotel sector to other areas, including eco-tourism and farm-to-table tourism, to build out visitor experiences. The Minister noted that more and more travellers are visiting farms for educational and recreational purposes.  “Farm tourism is a thriving business, providing both farmers and communities with additional income,” he said.

The Ministry of Tourism, through its Tourism Linkages Network, has been taking a proactive approach to using Jamaican food by implementing initiatives to equip farmers and agri-processors to take advantage of economic opportunities in the tourism sector and provide bigger markets for their produce.  Some $54.2 million has been pumped into gastronomy initiatives, like the Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee Festival, which ultimately benefit local farmers.

In addition, the Tourism Linkages Network, through the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), has committed over $24 million to projects to improve agricultural productivity and scale up sourcing, including facilitating the development of berry farming and the Tourism Agri-Linkages Exchange (ALEX) initiative, which has facilitated contracts valued at over $237 million.

Media Contact:

Corporate Communications

Ministry of Tourism

64 Knutsford Boulevard

Kingston 5

Tel: (876) 920-4926-30

Fax: (876) 906 1729

Jamaica Tourism Marketing Executive Marie Deeble Walker passed at age 58

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Jamaica tourism minister of Tourism Hon. Edmund Bartlett has expressed deep regret at the passing of former Jamaica Tourist Board marketing executive, Marie Deeble Walker.

“It is with great sadness that I learn of the passing of Marie Deeble Walker. She dedicated more than 30 years of her life working in hospitality tourism. The Jamaican tourism industry remains grateful for her contributions to the development and marketing of our industry.

We remain particularly grateful for her work with the diaspora community, including the staging of reggae music concerts in New York City Central Park’s Summerstage.,” said Minister Bartlett.

Marie Deeble Walker worked at the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), starting in Kingston in 1979, and was later transferred to the New York office as the advertising relations manager.

“I wish to offer my condolences to her friends, family and loved ones as they mourn her sudden passing.  She was the consummate professional with a very warm and jovial personality. Her passing is a tremendous loss for the industry and for those who knew her personally,” said Minister Bartlett.

At the time of her passing, she was the principal of Turnstyle Marketing and Collections — a boutique marketing and public relations agency that provides destination management and sales support services for a number of Caribbean destinations.

She passed away on July 10 in South Florida, United States. She was 58 years old.

Jamaica: Linkages increasing opportunities for Small Tourism Suppliers

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A new marketing gateway is being opened by way of the tourism linkages strategy, for the “the ordinary Jamaican” to benefit from dollar resources of the growing industry.

An indication of this working was given by Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett yesterday as he delivered the keynote address at a ceremony renaming a street in honor of Hon. Godfrey Dyer. As of yesterday, the Sunset Boulevard which links directly with the Sangster International Airport, is to be known as Godfrey Dyer Boulevard.

Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett (left) shares a light moment with Chairman of the Tourism Enhancement Fund, Hon Godfrey Dyer (center) and Mayor of Montego Bay, Councilor Homer Davis, both of whom welcomed him for Thursday’s ceremony to rename Sunset Boulevard, Godfrey Dyer Boulevard, in honor of Mr. Dyer for his contribution to the development of the city

Regarding the dollar-earning plan, Minister Bartlett divulged that “We’re looking at how to make the ordinary Jamaican who lives within the areas of the hotels to become suppliers of the inputs of tourism.”

The initiative is evolving in Lilliput, St James, home of the Iberostar Hotels. According to Minister Bartlett, there “small suppliers, using old tires, discarded pans and other receptacles and borrowing on the technology of hydroponics, are now producing tomatoes and bell peppers that are now ready for the market, and Iberostar is ready to buy.”

The Tourism Minister said while that may seem to be a little thing, “it is big thing because once that is replicated you will find that the ordinary man who thought that living around the hotel only meant working for the hotel, is now going to find that he can be a big supplier to the hotel that is across the road from him.” That, he said, was a “big thing for inclusiveness in terms of this industry.”

Mr. Dyer and the Tourism Linkages Network, which falls under the Tourism Enhancement Fund, were commended for this innovation “because it is going to be a big game-changer in terms of the ability to retain the dollar that we earn in tourism in the communities that are around the tourism area.”

Regarding Mr. Dyer, Minister Bartlett catalogued an encyclopedia of his achievements and lauded him for a lifetime of unstinting service in both the public and private sectors. He said the event was really about extolling Mr Dyer’s virtues “and who has dedicated himself and his life to the building and enhancing of this great city of Montego Bay.”

Having played a pivotal role in the creation of the Tourism Enhancement Fund while serving as president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourism Association, Mr Dyer is now in his second term as chairman of TEF. Under his Chairmanship Minister Bartlett declared, “Godfrey has done a tremendous job with the fund especially as it relates to the level of development it has supported.”

Montego Bay, regarded as the main pillar of the island’s tourism industry, has seen more development than any other entity, said Mr Bartlett. “Absolutely no entity has provided more capital injection in the development of Montego Bay than the Tourism Enhancement Fund under the chairmanship of Godfrey Dyer,” he said.

MEDIA CONTACT: Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, Corporate Communications, 64 Knutsford Boulevard, Kingston 5, Tel: 920-4926-30, Fax: 920-4944

Minister Bartlett addresses global tourism leaders at 2019 World Travel and Tourism Council

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As a part of a panel of the 2019 World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), held on Tuesday, June 11 in New York City, Minister of Tourism, Honorable Minister Edmund Bartlett spoke about the importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR), and how private-public partnerships serve as catalysts for economic growth and the transformation of local communities in tangible ways.

Minister Bartlett, who participated in a panel discussion titled “From Doing CSR to Being CSR,” said, “CSR must seek to create the balance between the idea of ‘me,’ and the definition of ‘we,’.” The Minister added, “In Jamaica we are working closely with our private sector partners to ensure that the ‘we,’ – meaning the residents of Jamaica – will experience the benefits of social and economic resilience. From our point of view, CSR is about enhancing and improving the quality of our lives locally.”

Minister Bartlett has been an ardent supporter of engaging the private sector to advance the sustainable development of tourism in Jamaica and globally. Under his leadership, Jamaica’s Ministry of Tourism has formed private-public partnerships and alliances that span a range of sectors, including transportation, agriculture, health and wellness, manufacturing, and small business. Some of these partnerships have taken the form of foreign direct investment, particularly in the area of accommodation.

In Jamaica and across the Caribbean, several international resorts are engaging in CSR practices in areas such as community outreach, housing renovations and donations to local schools. In Jamaica, Sandals Resorts is an example of how the private sector can take CSR one step further – beyond corporate philanthropy – by developing sustainable projects with direct linkages to local communities.

For example, Sandals Resorts has been working with local Jamaican farmers by donating seeds, and then offering a direct market for the reaped produce. In fact, 90 percent of all produce used in Jamaica is procured locally. Sandals Resorts is also investing in climate-related agricultural training at trade schools and in university programs across the country.

“The people of Jamaica are seeing the benefits of these CSR models, and so we are committed to expanding these social enterprise initiatives with our private sector partners to enhance Jamaica’s capacity to derive more from the growth of tourism in our country,” said Minister Bartlett.

The WTTC represents the travel and tourism private sector globally. Its members include more than 170 CEOs, Chairmen and Presidents of the world’s leading Travel & Tourism companies from all geographies, covering all industries.

MEDIA CONTACT: Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, Corporate Communications, 64 Knutsford Boulevard, Kingston 5, Tel: 920-4926-30, Fax: 920-4944

New Artisan Village part of Tourism Inclusive Growth Strategy

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Jamaia Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says the artisan village being constructed at Hampden Wharf in Trelawny forms part of the overall inclusive growth strategy to increase earnings among local suppliers.

The US $5.7 million project will have 47 shops along with the establishment of the island’s first artisan village which will accommodate 18 shops along 540 square metres.

Speaking at a recent walk through of the construction, Minister Bartlett highlighted the key role of the facility in creating more earning opportunities for local small and medium businesses.

“The artisan village will connect immediately the market or visitors with our products. When visitors come off the ship, they will be able to go straight to the artisan village and walk away with a piece of authentic Jamaican culture,” said Minister Bartlett.

The project sits on 1.6 hectares of land along the historic Falmouth Port and is being executed by the Port Authority of Jamaica and the Urban Development Company. 

“This artisan village is critical in our reimagining exercise where we are providing opportunities for entrepreneurship at the very base of the population. Tourism will be made more meaningful to the average Jamaican when access is provided for income generating activities and also for creative production.

This is a new and exciting opportunity for various levels of producers in the country that we have not paid enough attention to and not provided arrangements for. The artisan village will also provide a secure, safe and seamless operation for visitors and locals alike,” added Minister Bartlett.

The artisan village is slated to be ready by the end of the year to coincide with the start of the traditional winter tourist season in December.

For more information, contact:

Corporate Communications Division

Ministry of Tourism

64 Knutsford Boulevard

Kingston 5

Tel: (876) 920-4926-30

Fax: (876) 906 1729