MAJOR NEIL Lewis, vice president of the poultry division of the Jamaica Broilers Group, has assured contract poultry farmers that the company will be doing everything in its power to keep from reducing production levels this year.
This will be done, he said, by utilising "aggressive marketing and sales programmes" to get the product to the marketplace.
However, he noted that this had to be preceded by an initial reduction in production to get costly high inventories in line.
The company has admitted to a glut in supply caused by Jamaica Broilers' overextending during the Christmas holidays. This has led to the "under-usage" of contract farmers who have been waiting for weeks for chickens from the company.
Major Lewis said the group was now carrying a larger than normal inventory of chickens, and thus had a need to reduce production until inventory levels are back to normal, as storage costs are high.
Earlier this week the company's vice president, Chris Levy, blamed the lessened demand to increased imports and a generally slow period during January and February.
Contract framers have complained that their millions of dollars worth of investments was sitting idle because Jamaica Broilers had not been contracting their services as usual.
