Prime Minister Andrew Holness, has stated that he wants to see samples of exotic products, such as cassava flour and ackee wine, being manufactured on a wider scale in order to add greater value to the agricultural sector.

While at the Denbigh Agricultural show in Clarendon today, Mr. Holness said he wants the Ministry of Agriculture to take samples and turn them into widely available commodities that are on the shelves of not just Jamaica, but the entire Caribbean region and the world.

Mr. Holness also urged the Jamaica Agricultural Society to encourage young people, who have a greater affinity to technology, to get involved in agriculture.

He noted that they should be encouraged to be innovative, by applying technology to create a smarter kind of agriculture that will add more value to natural resources, thereby increasing the pace and growth of the Jamaican economy.

The Prime Minister said that while applying technology in agriculture may not necessarily surmount the competitive economies of scale that larger countries have, it could re-position Jamaica to the point where the island’s agriculture is economically viable and sustainable.

He contended that agriculture has, for too long, been regarded as a pastime, and emphasized that agriculture must now be seen as a business.