A Tour of Jamaica's First CSA Farm

Pantrepant Farm, in Jamaica's rugged Cockpit Country, is on the estate of Chris Blackwell, the legendary founder of Island Records. His latest project is a pioneering community-supported organic farm. Take a look.

By Dan Shapley

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pantrepant farm, jamaica csa, chris blackwell farm pantrepant farm jamaica csa Started as a sugarcane plantation in the 1700s, Pantrepant Farm is Jamaica's first CSA -- a community supported farm that doles out its shares in monthly installments. In the late 1800s, it became a beef cattle ranch, and in the 1980s, when the price of beef fell, the legendary founder of Island Records and promoter of Bob Marley, Chris Blackwell bought 2,500 acres as a private estate.

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Adam Miller, the farm manager of Pantrepant Farm, is not only implementing a sustainable agriculture plan for the island's first CSA, but working with the Jamaican Organic Agriculture Movement to organize small farmers, so they can produce enough organic produce to feed the needs of Jamaica's No. 1 industry, tourism. Some resorts, like Round Hill Hotel and Villas on Montego Bay, are embracing the budding local food movement by buying local and even starting their own organic gardens.

See how Round Hill Chef Martin Maginley is taking Jamaican cuisine "to another level."

pantrepant farm, jamaica csa, chris blackwell farm, jack russell terrier jack russell terrier pantrepant farm jamaica csa Bella, Miller's Jack Russel terrier, is always at his heels (or, in this case, the heels of the author). She likes coconut milk.

pantrepant farm, jamaica csa, chris blackwell farm, cockpit country pantrepant farm jamaica csa Pantrepant, Welsh for "House in the Hollow," is situated at the edge of Jamaica's Cockpit Country, a rugged region of porous Karst bedrock at the island's interior. The farm sits at the confluence of two rivers, the Martha Brae and the Roaring rivers, the watersheds of which supply as much as 30% of Jamaica’s drinking water, making the pesticide-free practices on the farm particularly important.

tony henry, pantrepant farm, jamaica csa, chris blackwell farm tony henry vegetable grower at pantrepant farm jamaica csa Tony Henry, 41, is Pantrepant Farm's vegetable grower. He learned the trade in Canada and has spent the last nine years working on Blackwell's estate. He's one of 33 Jamaicans from the region to work on the farm. His words of wisdom: "When you farm, you keep the good health, mon."

green pepper, pantrepant farm, jamaica csa, chris blackwell estate pepper pantrepant farm jamaica csa Growing specialty vegetables and herbs like lemon basil, arugula and this sweet pepper, is the focus for Pantrepant Farm. Like any good business, the farm makes a profit by filling a niche -- in this case, supplying wealthy all-inclusive resorts with fresh interesting vegetables.

pantrepant farm, jamaica csa, chris blackwell farm, cockpit country pantrepant farm jamaica csa Pantrepant Farm exists in a challenging environment for farming. The wet season can bring enough rain to swamp some fields under as much as 10 feet of water. The landscape is also abundant with wildlife; cranes and parrots could be seen flying around the farm's horses and cattle.

okra, jamaica csa, pantrepant farm, chris blackwell estate okra pantrepant farm jamaica csa Okra may grow well in the hot, alternately wet-and-dry conditions at the edge of Jamaica's Cockpit Country, but tomatoes are among the crops that are nearly impossible to grow.

coconut, pantrepant farm, jamaica csa, chris blackwell farm coconut on pantrepant farm jamaica csa The farm's vegetables are grown on a total of only 10 acres. Other land is used to graze cattle (free range, and delicious) and to grow coconut trees, which produce about 50 nuts an acre.

jamaica csa, pantrepant farm, chris blackwell farm, coconuts coconuts jamaica csa pantrepant farm There's nothing like fresh coconut milk in the middle of a farm tour on a hot, typically humid (98%) Jamaican day, as guests at Pantrepant Farm learned.

jamaican fruits and vegetables jamaican fruits and vegetables This spread of food, from the Bellefield Great House and Gardens (not Pantrepant Farm), reflects the diversity of Jamaica's cuisine. Breadfruit was grown as a cheap food to feed slaves, for instance, ackee was brought over by slaves from Africa and yams were eaten by the native Arawak tribes that were exterminated shortly after European colonization.

pantrepant farm, jamaica csa, chris blackwell estate Like its cuisine and its people, Jamaica's landscape is an illustration of history, with native species intermingled with species introduced from Europe and Africa.

horseback riding, pantrepant farm, jamaica csa horseback riding pantrepant farm Together with the affiliated Golden Eye development, Pantrepant Farm may soon be open to tourists for farm tours, horseback riding and ...

swimming hole, jamaica csa, pantrepant farm, chris blackwell estate ... a beautiful swimming hole near the confluence of the Martha Brae and Roaring rivers.

blackwell rum, pantrepant farm, chris blackwell estate blackwell rum Chris Blackwell, the legendary founder of Island Records, has not only founded the Jamaica's first CSA, but he's bottling some excellent rum.