Business View Caribbean | December 2019

36 BUSINESS VIEW CARIBBEAN DECEMBER 2019 was front of package labelling and there was big discussion between the manufacturers and the national standards bodies about how much information you put on the label, because a nutritional label is there, anyway, and whether you should add an alert or not. The manufacturers think that putting an alert on the front of their package is not trade-friendly. And the health sector believes that people should see what is in the product. The good thing is the parties are working together and, hopefully, they’ll come to a consensus. “As for our goals, the word is out but we need to get more people to recognize the benefits of having their goods tested and proven for trade. We need them to understand the value of a tested product because, when they go through our certified lab, they can access markets internationally. So, you may be good for your community, good for local trade, but you want to know that to go into a North American market or European market, you do that by getting your product lab-certified and accredited. If we can increase the amount of participants in global trade with products that are accepted worldwide because it has a Jamaican trademark proving it has been through the Bureau’s rigor, then that is our one- to-three-year goal: to increase trade and give confidence in our traders.” PREFERRED VENDORS n Petrojam Limited www.petrojam.com n Tank-Weld Metals www.tankweld.com