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http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20090625/business/business1.html

Below is a quotation from an article from the Jamaica Gleaner online about the issue of ‘imported frozen patties’ allegedly raised at the Annual General Meeting of the JMA on Wednesday.

‘The Government has dismissed concerns raised yesterday by the Jamaica Manufacturers’ Association (JMA) about the importation of frozen patties, arguing there was nothing illegal about persons engaging in such trade…..’

Other excerpts from the Jamaica Gleaner article are as follows-

“What we can do is lament the fact that patties are brought in here on a competitive basis but we can’t prevent people from importing anything into Jamaica,” said Karl Samuda, minister of industry, investment and commerce. “We can’t stop it because we are an open market.”

“There is Juici Beef, there is Tastee Patties producing and Jamaicans are purchasing imported patties and I find this totally ridiculous,” said Omar Azan,

“We are having problems with foreign exchange to buy raw materials to produce and employ Jamaicans but yet still we are finding US dollars to purchase imported patties?”

If the allegations are true, the JMA has apparently forgotten the old Jamaican proverb which goes something like ‘The same knife weh stick goat stick sheep’

It was only recently that the government consulted them on the issue of whether the 15 per cent CET on imported Cement should be suspended for another year. Their response angered the Caribbean Cement Company as they suggested a ‘quota system’ rather than recommending the suspension of the waiver that allowed ‘cement importers’ to gain a significant share of the market. The same ‘problems with foreign exchange’ argument undoubtedly would have been one of the points used by the Caribbean Cement Company when they were trying to get the JMA to back their position as a monopoly producer of cement in Jamaica.

Additionally, it seems a little hypocritical for us to be trying to block the importation of ‘frozen patties’ while at the same time fighting to export our patties to Trinidad.

My personal belief is that our local patty producers are in no real danger from the ‘imported frozen patties’ as Jamaicans are also interested in quality. The overseas supplier may be able to beat local manufacturers on effectiveness and probably cost, but will most certainly loose on the ‘taste test’. The imported patties also face cultural barriers as Jamaican’s like their patties ‘fresh and hot’.