A FORCE FOR FARMERS:
THE JCF LAUNCHES AGRICULTURAL PROTECTION BRANCH TO DEFEND JAMAICA’S LIFEBLOOD
The Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) has launched a dedicated Agricultural Protection Branch (APB), signalling a major new commitment to tackling praedial larceny and safeguarding national food security. The move comes amid rising concerns that organised criminal networks are using agricultural theft to fund wider criminal activities, threatening livelihoods, economic stability, and even national security.
The new unit was formally launched this week in Kingston, with the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Strategic Operations, Warren Clarke, warning that praedial larceny has evolved beyond petty theft and now constitutes a “clear and present danger to our way of life … Protecting our agriculture industry is a matter of national security,” DCP Clarke declared.
A Sector Under Siege
Agriculture remains a vital pillar of the Jamaican economy, contributing over $90 billion annually and supporting more than 200,000 livelihoods. Yet the sector has come under sustained attack, not only from thieves but also from a broader cultural shift that has made farming unattractive to the younger generation.
“It’s rare that you ask a youngster out of high school or university that they’ll tell you that they are going into agriculture, and that is a shame,” Clarke observed. “Regrettably, the industry has been on the siege from cultural unattractiveness.”
In addition to waning interest from young people, the sector is increasingly vulnerable to organised criminal activity. DCP Clarke outlined a concerning trend in which the proceeds of agricultural theft are used to purchase illegal firearms and fuel gang operations.
“Much of the yield from farms across the island has been pillaged by elements of criminal gangs,” he explained. “The stolen resources drive influence, even political influence, which threatens governance; purchase firearms and ammunition and otherwise empower third-generation gangs that dampen the fortunes of our country.”
A Coordinated National Response
The newly formed Agricultural Protection Branch has been tasked with addressing these issues head-on. Its core mandate is to protect crops, livestock and the critical infrastructure that supports agricultural production. Officers will be deployed across key farming regions and will work in close partnership with farming communities, other state agencies, and private stakeholders.
“The mandate is clear: to protect our agriculture resources from theft and damage,” DCP Clarke said. “The branch will employ a multifaceted approach, which includes intelligence, investigation, surveillance, intelligence gathering, and collaboration with key partners within and outside the industry,” he explained.
The branch will also be integrated into the JCF’s broader violence prevention strategy, reflecting the links between agricultural theft and violent crime.
“Pursuing praedial larceny targets aligns with everything else that we are doing in the Force in driving violence down,” Clarke noted. “We are going to be identifying those criminals and those gangs that use the financing fleeced from our farmers to empower themselves. We will be looking for them in earnest.”
The economic impact of praedial larceny has been widely documented in recent years, with farmers citing major financial losses and growing fear over their personal safety. But Clarke stressed that the consequences of agricultural crime extend beyond the farm gate.
“Every stolen crop, every lost animal, represents a loss to our nation,” he warned. “It impacts the availability of food, drives prices in the wrong direction, and can lead to instability,” the DCP said.
Describing the APB as an essential part of national development, he issued a rousing call to the officers assigned to the new unit. “The protection of our substance is everybody’s business,” Clarke said. “I’d like to charge you, the members of the Agricultural Protection Branch, to remain relentless in your pursuit of those who seek to diminish the ideal of Jamaica being the best place to live, work and grow families and your business.”
