Newport-Ferson slashes fertiliser price by 22% 

Durrant Pate/ Contributor

Fertiliser prices in Jamaica are going down effective today, as farmers are now breathing a sigh of relief.

Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Pearnel Charles Jr. announced a 22 per cent reduction in the price of fertiliser supplied by Newport-Fersan Jamaica Limited, which is one of the largest suppliers of fertiliser in the country. 

Making his contribution to the 2023/2024 Sectoral Debate in parliament, the Minister said this is welcome news to the agriculture sector, which has been reeling under higher input costs, due to the war in Ukraine, COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain challenges over the past two years.

The announced cut in the price of fertiliser, a stable ingredient in the agriculture sector is a much-needed relief for farmers. Minister Charles Jr. confirmed that the price adjustment takes effect today (Wednesday, May 3).

This latest price cut by Newport-Fersan Jamaica represents the second in the last six months. Last November, the company reduced fertiliser prices by between two and 11 per cent.

Minister Charles told the parliament that his Ministry plans to spend almost J$7 billion this financial year to improve agriculture infrastructure adding that the agriculture sector managed to achieve much over the last two years, despite significant challenges. He updated the parliament on the sector’s performance during the just ended 2022/2023 financial year when it contributed 8.3% of economic output. In addition, the sector experienced unprecedented growth, setting new records in production with a historic seven consecutive quarters of growth and a first time ever surpassing 800,000 tonnes of the domestic crop with a record 846,508 tonnes in 2022, representing a 9.9% increase compared to 770,456 tonnes in 2021.