KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining is holding an in depth watch on egg provide and market circumstances because the sector continues to recuperate from the impression of Hurricane Melissa.
The ministry’s assertion comes amid considerations from Mark Campbell, President of the Jamaica Egg Farmers Affiliation (JEFA), who warned that ongoing egg importation, initially accredited after the hurricane, might undermine the progress of native producers rebuilding their operations.
In a media launch on Monday, the ministry emphasised that the financial well-being of Jamaican egg farmers stays a prime precedence. “All measures relating to egg importation are fastidiously monitored to make sure that each native producers and customers usually are not deprived,” the ministry stated.
The challenges date again to Hurricane Beryl in 2024, which had already disrupted egg manufacturing. Submit-Beryl restoration was sluggish, with provide failing to achieve pre-hurricane ranges. Lodges confronted shortages, and supermarkets carried out buy limits to handle diminished availability. Hurricane Melissa, which struck on October 28, 2025, additional compounded the issue, ensuing within the lack of roughly 400,000 laying hens and a big drop in nationwide output.
In keeping with the ministry, post-Melissa assessments point out that home egg provide fell by round 40 per cent, with restoration projected to take eight to 12 months. Manufacturing information for the primary half of 2026 counsel output will stay 30-40 per cent under the five-year common. Month-to-month manufacturing shouldn’t be anticipated to exceed 2025 ranges till August 2026, when year-over-year positive aspects are anticipated.
JEFA revised really helpful costs following the hurricane: unbranded eggs elevated from $550 to $670 per dozen, and branded eggs from $580 to $700 per dozen, citing diminished manufacturing and better logistics and refrigeration prices.
To ease provide constraints and reasonable costs, the ministry accredited restricted egg imports and secured a brief waiver on import obligation, stamp obligation, and common consumption tax (GCT). Initially set to run out February 28, 2026, the waiver’s extension is now being sought till the top of Could 2026, permitting the market to stabilize whereas native manufacturing recovers.
The ministry reiterated that these interventions are focused, momentary, and monitored, with the objective of balancing client wants and supporting the resilience of Jamaica’s egg farmers.
