Holding or Farm

The holding or farm is all the land being utilized in full or in part for agricultural purposes which is located in a single parish. The holding or farm may consist of one parcel of land or may be in several parcels. Where it comprises several parcels all parcels must be located within the same parish to be considered a single farm. Where parcels are located in several parishes, there will be as many farms as parishes. Where a holding straddles (i.e. on the border of) two parishes, the parish where the house/residence or the headquarters is located is to be regarded as the parish of location.

A farm may comprise land in crops or it may be animals only. Where there are animals only, and no land dedicated to their rearing these are referred to as landless farms.

In term of size, a holding or farm is any agricultural enterprise with a minimum of at least one of the following:

(i)one square chain (0.04 ha)of cultivation (crops including flowers whether in a

greenhouse/shade house or not.Note that there is no size limit to the greenhouse/shade house); or

(ii)twelve bearing economic trees e.g. citrus, mangoes, breadfruit etc.; or

(iii)two head of cattle; or

(iv)two pigs or five goats or five sheep; or

(v)fifty poultry (any combination) including ducks, turkeys etc.; or

(vi)six beehives; or

(vii)one fish (including ornamental) or shrimp pond of any size.

Landless Holding/Farm

It is possible based on the minimum criteria identified, for a holder to be in possession of what may be regarded as a landless holding. This will occur mostly in cases where Livestock and or Poultry are being reared. Persons with one head of cattle or one dozen poultry for example need not be in possession of any land and may be landless farmers/holders.

Holder or Farmer

The words holder, farmer, farm operator are used interchangeably and they all mean the same thing. This is the person who exercises management control over the agricultural holding operation and takes major decisions regarding the use of resources.The holder may be a single individual, a government company or agency or a private company. The farmer is financially responsible for the business, pays the bills, bears all the risks, and makes the profits directly resulting from the farming operations. The holder may own the land, he may be a tenant or he may occupy the land without either owning or paying to the owner for his occupancy (squatter) etc.

The interviewers were instructed to note that “the holder may not be doing the actual manual work on the farm. Generally in our society we refer to the small operator who works his own small piece of land and rears his few animals as the farmer and the operator of the large farms who may only direct the labour or delegate the day to day operations of the farm to an overseer or manager, we refer to as the holder. They are both the same as they exercise management control over the operation”.