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Permanent Secretary Dermon Spence in discussion with Purchasing Manager Yoshiro Sugawara

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September 9, 2019

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Dermon Spence (centre) engages in discussion with Purchasing Manager of Hoei Kogyo Company Limited, Yoshiro Sugawara (left) during Mr. Sugawara’s visit to the Ministry’s Hope Gardens offices on September 5. At right is General Manager of the Export Division in the Ministry, Byron Henry. Mr. Sugawara, whose company is responsible for the wholesale distribution of spices in Japan was visiting Jamaica, from which it imports most of its pimento, to familiarize himself with pimento and to gain first-hand knowledge of the production process. The Permanent Secretary used the opportunity to encourage his visitor to increase the importation of more Jamaican spices, including pimento, which Mr Sugawara classified as the “best flavoured in the world”. Jamaica currently exports some 30,000 tonnes of pimento to Japan annually.

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