By George Henry, Gleaner Writer 
Pig farmer, Lloyd Francis (centre) and his assistants Andre Henry (left) and Cleveland Brown with piglets produced on his Baillieston farm in North West Clarendon. - George Henry Photo
LLOYD FRANCIS, 53, is back in the pig rearing business and this time the farmer from Baillieston, Clarendon has big plans for the activity he had quit for several years while he was working in Kingston.
Mr. Francis resumed commercial farming just over two years ago and currently rears about 100 pigs including 12 sows but his goal is to increase the number of sows to about 30 with each producing about 20 piglets per year. At the same time he wishes to supply pork for jerking purposes on a larger scale.
OPPORTUNITIES
Questioned whether the importation of pork could affect his marketing opportunities, he said, "I don't think we will ever have a problem again because the local market is not exhausted. Many of those persons who at one time had refused to eat pork are now eating it."
He also noted that with the establishment of more jerk pork centres there has been a further demand for the meat.
Mr. Francis said that over the next four years he intends to increase his stock to about 600 pigs to facilitate the production of ham and bacon. He is also considering using the refuse from his pig farm to create a bio-gas plant to produce methane (cooking gas).
But in the meantime he said that production was being hampered because of inadequate water. "I want to expand but because of a poor water supply system in my area, I have had to be purchasing water at a high price," he said.
