Jamaica · National Food Import Intelligence · Week 24, 2026
Import Dependency Monitor
Jamaica spends approximately US$840 million annually on food imports — including commodities that Jamaican farmers can grow. This dashboard quantifies the import burden and maps the local substitution opportunity in real time.
Annual Food Import Bill
US$840M
~18% of total import expenditure · 2025 STATIN estimate
Substitution Opportunity
US$310M
Imports currently producible locally with existing agricultural capacity
HelloAG Target (5-Year)
US$185M
Import substitution enabled by TAII + Connect scale to full Jamaica
Forex Saved (5-Year)
J$29B
Estimated foreign exchange retained in Jamaican economy via local sourcing
Annual Import Bill by CategoryUS$840M Total
Grain, Flour & Rice
US$269M32%
Poultry, Meat & Fish
US$202M24%
Dairy, Oils & Fats
US$126M15%
Fresh Produce
US$92M11%
Processed Food
US$84M10%
Beverages & Other
US$67M8%
Substitutability Analysis
Cannot substitute (wheat, rice) — 40%
Partially substitutable — 23%
Fully substitutable locally — 37%
Local Substitution Opportunities by CommodityUS$310M addressable
Commodity
Import Value
Local Capacity
HAG Opportunity
Score
Onion & Garlic
US$28M
High — St. Elizabeth
US$22M
High
Fresh Tomato
US$19M
High — Clarendon, St. Cath.
US$15M
High
Sweet Pepper
US$12M
Medium — St. Elizabeth
US$9M
High
Broiler Chicken
US$85M
High — National
US$35M
Medium
Fresh Herbs
US$8M
High — Trelawny, St. Mary
US$7M
High
Carrots
US$11M
High — Manchester
US$9M
High
Cucumber
US$7M
Medium — Clarendon
US$5M
Medium
Yam
US$15M
High — St. Mary, Portland
US$13M
High
Dairy Products
US$62M
Low — capacity gap
US$8M
Low
5-Year Import Trajectory · With and Without HelloAG InterventionJ$29B forex retention target by 2031
Import bill (baseline trajectory)
Import bill with HelloAG scale
Year 1 Target
US$18M
Import substitution from TAII-connected farms. 45 hotel properties. 200 enrolled farmer enterprises. North Coast and Kingston priority corridors.
Year 3 Target
US$75M
Full TAII national coverage. 500+ enrolled enterprises. Export linkage programme active. CARICOM supply chain connections established.
Year 5 Target
US$185M
National import substitution at scale. Measurable forex retention. PIOJ-trackable food security improvement. Regional model for CARICOM replication.