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    At 300 acres, Baronhall is the single largest coffee farm in Jamaica. The most important praise one can give Baronhall is that the Jamaica Coffee Board uses this operation as a model farm. Others also think highly of Baronhall. The Speciality Coffee Association of America, an organisation of gourmet coffee producers, were guests at Baronhall in January 2000.

Baronhall is owned by Jamaica Standard Products which was incorporated in 1942, making it one of the oldest coffee roasting companies in Jamaica. JSP is the only coffee manufacturing company in the island with a quality system registered to ISO 9002. JSP controls every aspect of farming and processing.

JSP has always been family owned and operated since the company was founded by Leslie Minott, a self made entrepreneur who ran it up to his death in 1972 when Jackie Minott took over as Managing Director. Jackie's son, John, joined him in 1991 as General Manager. "Now the succession is imminent," says the youthful Jackie, who is so proud of his produce that he is quick to boast "I drink about six cups a day. I eat and drink coffee, it is my life."

Baronhall had been owned by the Carreras Group until its devastation by Hurricane Gilbert in 1988. The Minotts bought it as wrecked farm, with only 30 acres of standing coffee, and even that died after a year and a half. "We had to replant the entire 300 acres," says Managing Director Jackie Minott.

Baronhall is 2,000 feet above sea level, where the coffee is grown under the shade of Inga Vera trees. Besides shade, these fast growing trees contribute to coffee growing because their leaves provide nutrients for the soil. A spring on the farm facilitates the pulping of coffee with spring water.

The farm and factory has a core workforce of 120. When the trees are picked (six times from September to December) during harvest, as many as 400 reapers are hired. The majority of these are female workers, many of them breadwinners with children.

Visitors get an immediate sense that this farm is efficiently and expertly run. Statistics are available for every level of the operation. At the farm you are just as likely to come across employees discussing wastage, as you can find Farm Manager Douet Reid, an agronomist, assessing the quality of the greenbeans. Visitors see charts everywhere, measuring all elements of the farm and the factory.

Baronhall was chosen by two doctoral candidates from Temple University for their 3-year project on migratory patterns of birds who come to this part of Jamaica in the winter months. The research fellows wrote a report in 1999 that Baronhall will make available to visitors on request.

Jamaica Standard Products exports coffee greenbeans to Japan, the UK, USA, Canada, Spain, Italy and Australia. Its roasted product is exported to Japan, the UK, USA, Canada, Germany, Cayman, Turks & Caicos, St. Martin, Hong Kong and Norway. Baronhall also produces a liqueur which sells in duty free stores.