AGRICULTURE MINISTER Roger Clarke has taken personal interest in the preparations for the Denbigh Agricultural and Industrial Show 2000, scheduled for August 5-7, at the annual Sponsors' Breakfast held Wednesday at the Terra Nova Hotel in St. Andrew.
Calling on his own special fund-raising skills, Mr. Clarke urged traditional and potential sponsors of the show to "give generously" to the cause of agriculture, the best of which he said was brought out at the premier annual national agricultural show at Denbigh in Clarendon.
Early off the mark among the sponsors were National Commercial Bank, Nestle (JMP) Limited, Desnoes and Geddes, the Govern-ment Pimento Warehouse, All-Island Jamaica Cane Farmers' Association, Scotiabank, Master Blend Feeds, Cocoa Industry Board, Grace, Kennedy and Company Limited, Sugar Industry Authority, Jamaica Broilers and the Jamaica Agricul-tural Development Foundation.
Most of the entities pledged to maintain or increase the levels of support they gave last year.
Like top officers of the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS), which stages the Denbigh Show, Mr. Clarke pointed to the financial turnaround at last year's show as a sign that the event was poised to deliver on its promise of a grand 2000 show, befitting of the milestone year.
Rebounding from a long period of losses at the annual show, the JAS last year managed to realise a small profit from the event.
Denbigh 2000, is to be held under the theme "Technology: the Pathway to Agricultural Productivity and Competitiveness", is projected to cost $5.5 million.
More than 35,000 patrons are expected to attend the event, which is to feature a wide range of technological and entertainment-related displays.
Mr. Clarke said the choice of a technology-based theme for the show was both timely and indicative of the seriousness which was being brought to bear on the agricultural sector, where changing circumstances were dictating changing attitudes and adaptations.
"Technology can no longer be just a buzz word. Our challenge is to provide the right technologies and related information to the farming communities for there to be greater productivity in the sector," he said.
The minister also urged the JAS to focus more attention on the problems of large-scale farming entities and individuals. He said while small-scale farming was of great importance, it was large-scale farming that could make the vital difference on the international scene.
Meantime, chief executive officer of the JAS, Robert Reid, took the opportunity to clarify a recent media report that the JAS was indebted to the tune of $129 million. He said that information was incorrect and the figure mentioned actually represented the positive difference between the society's assets and its liabilities as at October 1999.
President of the JAS, A.A. 'Bobby Pottinger', further clarified the matter in revealing that the society actually owes $64 million.
