Glenese Smith sorts coffee beans at the Moy Hall Coffee factory in Cedar Valley, St. Thomas. - ContributedTHE MOY Hall coffee factory in Cedar Valley, St. Thomas, has been transformed into a profitable enterprise, a far cry from the debt-ridden venture which obtained up to 1997, according to secretary/manager of the co-operative which operates the factory, O'Neil Blake.
He noted that in 1999, two years after the operation restarted, production doubled to some 17,000 boxes. Last year production reached 22,000 boxes.
Mr. Blake says the factory also exports the highest quality of green beans, noting that in 1998 approximately 78 per cent of the total number of beans produced was exported, and that in 1999, about 73.5 per cent was also sold to overseas markets.
Minister of Agriculture, Roger Clarke, has congratulated members of the co-operative who were responsible for the turn-a-round of the factory. "The legacy of debt was almost overbearing, but the coffee farmers made sacrifices. Some put their own resources and hard work in the process of transforming the factory and that is what has made the difference," he points out.
In 1997, a new management was appointed and the government injected some capital. Two years later, there was also a capital injection of $12 million as part of the government's drive to revitalise the coffee sub-sector.
The factory recently received a grant of $22 million under the Eastern Jamaica Agricultural Support Project (EJASP), funded by the Government and the European Union (EU). This coffee sub-project is intended to increase production at the estate.
Speaking at the recent launch of the sub-project, EJASP project manager, Leslie Grant, said some of the money would be spent on the marketing and processing of coffee.
He said that the factory now has new machines, and that coffee is being exported not only to Japan, but the United States and the United Kingdom.
The extension service has been expanded and the 8-hectare coffee estate has been rehabilitated. Production is expected to increase from 25 boxes per hectare to over 250 boxes in two and a half years, Mr. Blake said.
"We have also updated our accounting systems and right now we have an audit being done by Deloitte and Touche," he added.
Some 1,500 small farmers supply the Moy Hall factory with coffee beans annually. The Moy Hall Coffee Co-operative has a staff of 137, 70 per cent of whom are women.
Carlene Ogilvie has been working at the factory as a security officer for two years. In addition to supplying coffee to the factory from her 1.4-hectare farm, Miss Ogilvie ensures that the coffee is checked off. "I also ensure that my coffee and others are secured from the time of entry on the compound to the time the beans are packed on the truck for the Coffee Industry Board," she adds.
Outlining the stages in the preparation of coffee, Mr. Blake says beans are reaped by farmers and taken to a depot where a selector picks the best ones after the floating process, to ensure that no green or light beans are in the batch.
The beans are then taken to the factory where they are refloated and measured. They are then dried to 12 per cent moisture, after which they remain for six weeks. Hulling then takes place which involves removing the silvery skin from the beans. Grading, picking and sorting then follow. The highest quality beans are placed in barrels for export.
Barrels are used as a marketing strategy for Blue Mountain coffee. Blue Mountain coffee is the only coffee in the world that is exported in 70-kilogramme barrels. Lower grades are exported in bags.
The Coffee Industry Board is responsible for sampling, cup-testing and verifying the coffee that is produced.
