The new egg processing plant being built by the Jamaica Egg Farmers Association (JEFA) should be completed in three weeks, according to the president, Mark Campbell.

Mr. Campbell, who made the announcement upon receiving the cheque for a $15 million loan from the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands last week Wednesday, said the plant was 98 per cent complete. The loan will be used to finance part of the cost of constructing the $30 million facility at Freeport in Montego Bay, St. James.

The establishment of the egg processing plant will allow the JEFA to meet the huge demand that exists for liquid egg mainly in the local hotel industry and the wider Caribbean. The egg processing plant is the only one of its kind in the Caribbean.

"Given the requirements of international food safety standards, hotel operators have been demanding pasteurised liquid eggs, as the heating process ensures that the eggs are safe from food borne diseases," Agriculture Minister Roger Clarke explained at the handing over of the money at the ministry's office at Hope Gardens, St. Andrew.

Import liquid eggs

Mr. Clarke pointed out that a survey of the industry conducted by the Agricultural Support Services Project (ASSP) in 2005 showed that 75 per cent of commercial establishments, which currently import liquid eggs, were in favour of using the product that would be produced here.

He noted that over 150 million eggs were produced last year, but low consumption was causing much of it to be wasted. "The coming on stream of the liquid egg plant at this time is, therefore, more than opportune (as) it will not only assist the hotel sector to meet international food safety requirements, but it will also serve to absorb the excess production," Minister Clarke said.

He also noted that the addition of the extra 5,000 rooms in the hotel sector would provide increased marketing opportunities for the egg industry.