What is JACRA?

THE JAMAICA Agricultural Commodities Regulatory Authority (JACRA) is a statutory body established under the JACRA Act 2017 to provide the regulatory framework for the growing, processing, grading and trading in Jamaica’s coffee, cocoa, coconut and spices industries. It is effectively a merger off the regulatory functions of three predecessor statutory bodies – the Coffee Industry Board, the Cocoa Industry Board and the Coconut Industry Board. It additionally provides the regulatory framework for trading in Jamaican spices such as ginger, pimento, turmeric and nutmeg. These were previously marketed by the Export Division of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries.

ROLE AND FUNCTION OF JACRA

The primary functions of JACRA include, but are not limited to, the following:

Promote interest, growth and efficiency in the regulated commodities.

Establish, prescribe and enforce standards of quality, grading and certification for export and import of commodities as well as the local trade.

Specify the most appropriate varieties of the commodities which may be cultivated or manufactured in Jamaica for export or local trade.

Intervene in disputes and employ dispute-resolution strategies to resolve those disputes when considered appropriate.

Provide technical advice to minister and other stakeholders.

Perform any other duties which may become necessary under the act or by any other enactments.

CORE PROCESSES AND SERVICES

As customer-focused organisation, JACRA provides its key services through the core processes:

Licensing: Licensing and monitoring of the commodities’ dealers, processors, works and nurseries; trademark registration and monitoring of users, processors and dealers.

Certification: Definition of quality standards, growing areas; recommending plant varieties and certifying quality of the commodities; sample testing; handling of export documentation and preparation when requested to do so.

Technical services: Providing farmers and other relevant stakeholders with informational and capacity building resources through demonstrations, workshops and training sessions. Definition and recommendation of appropriate crop-growing areas and appropriate varieties to be grown.