Sat | Dec 20, 2025

Seaboard Jamaica partners with relief agencies to support national recovery after Melissa

Published:Tuesday | December 2, 2025 | 12:06 AM
Seaboard Jamaica’s CEO, Corah Ann Robertson-Sylvester (second left), briefs (from left) Colonel Anthony Gregory, Major Dwayne Trowers, and Pan Jamaica Group Vice-Chairman and CEO Jeffrey Hall, on the coordinated efforts behind the donation of eight 40-fo
Contributed
Seaboard Jamaica’s CEO, Corah Ann Robertson-Sylvester (second left), briefs (from left) Colonel Anthony Gregory, Major Dwayne Trowers, and Pan Jamaica Group Vice-Chairman and CEO Jeffrey Hall, on the coordinated efforts behind the donation of eight 40-foot containers to the Jamaica Defence Force. 

SEABOARD JAMAICA is working closely with a broad network of international and regional partners to support the country’s recovery following the impact of Hurricane Melissa. The company has partnered with NGOs, public and private sector organisations, and humanitarian groups including the World Food Programme, Trinidad & Tobago Manufacturers Association, Samaritan’s Purse, Food For The Poor, ODPEM, and others to provide vital shipping and logistics support. Seaboard is also collaborating with World Central Kitchen to provide refrigerated storage capacity for food items used in preparing daily hot meals in western Jamaica.

As a major shipping line serving Miami and New York , home to large Jamaican diaspora communities, Seaboard Marine has been shipping relief items into Jamaica at discounted freight rates from all origin ports, with particularly strong support coming from the diaspora in Florida and New York.

Seaboard Marine continues to provide a dedicated weekly vessel call into the Port of Montego Bay, ensuring that critical supplies reach the western side of the island where the need remains high.

The company’s Montego Bay warehouse, known locally as ‘Small Wharf’, has resumed full operations, enabling personal and commercial customers to ship and clear their Less Than Container Load (LCL) cargo directly at the facility. To further support customers, the warehouse has extended its opening hours for the remainder of 2025 to include Saturdays, beginning November 29.

As part of the private-sector relief effort, Seaboard Marine also partnered with PanJam to provide several shipping containers to the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) for the secure storage of relief items, strengthening on-the-ground coordination and distribution.

Alongside its humanitarian support, the company has introduced measures to ease commercial disruptions during the recovery period. To assist importers and exporters, Seaboard Marine had stopped the clock on demurrage charges at both Kingston and Montego Bay ports for the period October 23 to November 30. Additionally, all shipments to and from Jamaica have been exempted from Peak Season Surcharges for the remainder of the year.

These initiatives are designed to reduce financial strain on businesses, support continued trade, and contribute to the wider national effort to restore stability and normalcy in the wake of Hurricane Melissa.