Agro-processors delight with unique, tasty treats at Denbigh 68

PATRONS WHO attended the 68th staging of the Denbigh Agricultural and Industrial Show in Clarendon were treated to culinary delights at the 13 parish pavilions coordinated by Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) home economics officers.

By Monday, the final of the three-day event, many of the products were sold out, including products at Stony Hill’s Mount Salus Farmers Group.

Debbian Gayle, commenting on the products which are not yet officially released to the public, said Denbigh was the ‘testing’ ground for the products.

Mango chutney, mango ice cream and mango cheese cake were all sold out, while the pumpkin punch, ‘tinking toe’ juice blended with tamarind juice were other favourites, along with the naseberry wine, that kept the Kingston and St Andrew booth busy.

Gayle said now that she has seen first-hand the reception of the public to the products at the show, her group will be going back to St Andrew to focus on developing the products and getting them to market soon.

“No need to waste the mangoes, there are so many things you can do with it,” she said, informing also that the group has made mango shae butter and mango soap.

Ingrid Barrett, RADA social services and economics officer in the parish of Trelawny, showcased the many products she made and which she is also teaching groups in the parish to make.

Among them were sweet potato carrot jam, pickles, sweet potato fruit cake, sweet potato flour, yam flour, among other goodies.

She advised that processing the products to make flour will need specialised equipment, but it is something that is worth the investment.

“The (counter) flour is cheaper, but you are also thinking about the health benefits, we talking about longevity, eating healthy and minimising lifestyle diseases,” she said, pointing out that it may require a little extra effort to get the sweet potatoes. She suggested buying when the prices fall to reduce production cost.

Her stock of flour made from sweet potatoes, as well as yam can be purchased at any of the RADA agri-marts across the island.

Marcia Burnett, who hails from St Thomas, showcased her products – breadfruit pickle, banana pickle, mango pepper sauce, mango pineapple jam and tamarind honey trail.

Burnett’s journey into agriculture has been characterised by a series of twist and turns, as initially she wanted to be a nurse but her mother could not afford it. She started attending the College of Agriculture Science and Education (CASE), but dropped out due to financial constraints. Her father (now deceased) suggested that she tried hair dressing. She did it for 25 years, before going into décor in 2000.

Two years later, she decided to try farming, focusing on Scotch bonnet peppers.

“After seeing the result of the overgrowth, I said OK, I can go into pepper sauce. One year, they (RADA) were doing breadfruit pepper sauce and I started and from there, [and] I started developing other products,” she shared.

Sharing that it is an in-born trait to be creative, she said she put together and tried her concoctions and they worked.

She said the response to the products has been good and she plans on continuing to promote them.

Camille Ambersley, RADA social services and home economics officer for the parish of Westmoreland, has already seen first-hand the response to the products Agriculture Minister Pearnel Charles Jr is pushing – wheat substitutes – cassava flour, sweet potato flour, among others. Patrons bought them up.

“Cassava flour is a good alternative to the regular counter flour because it is gluten free and cassava can be grown with no crop-care practice, the management style is not burdensome,” she informed.

Breadfruit flour is another affordable alternative as she said it is in abundance across Jamaica. It is also top seller for the agency.

cecelia.livingston@gleanerjm.com