Metrication in Jamaica
Encyclopedia
Jamaica
started metrication
in the 1970s. However, it was not completed until the 2000s.
Since the 1970s, metric units were introduced into the curriculum of the primary and secondary school systems. The Common Entrance and CXC examinations syllabus use metric units. The Ministry of Education also supports a policy of procuring metric-only textbooks for use in the school system. The informal sector involving vocational, adult literacy and retraining facilities were also being transformed.
Large producers of staple foods such as flour, rice, salt, sugar, chicken and other meats, supply products in metric units. A main objective of the Bureau of Standards, a targeted area of work of its Metrication Department, is to have outlets supplying everyday breakbulk items trade in metric units. While not yet a majority, large and medium-sized wholesale and retail outlets, such as supermarkets and fabric stores, have converted islandwide, particularly in the capital Kingston
and adjoining urban centres.
scale. but in 2010 "The Gleaner" a local newspaper, gave temperatures in both Fahrenheit and Celsius
Most locally packaged goods and export commodities, traditional and non-traditional, are labelled in metric units, although USA
labelling regulations pose a constraint with their requirement for the use of dual units on goods exported to the country. A sticker is often used to denote the US customary units on products exported to the United States.
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
started metrication
Metrication
Metrication refers to the introduction and use of the SI metric system, the international standard for physical measurements. This has involved a long process of independent and systematic conversions of countries from various local systems of weights and measures. Metrication began in France in...
in the 1970s. However, it was not completed until the 2000s.
Since the 1970s, metric units were introduced into the curriculum of the primary and secondary school systems. The Common Entrance and CXC examinations syllabus use metric units. The Ministry of Education also supports a policy of procuring metric-only textbooks for use in the school system. The informal sector involving vocational, adult literacy and retraining facilities were also being transformed.
Large producers of staple foods such as flour, rice, salt, sugar, chicken and other meats, supply products in metric units. A main objective of the Bureau of Standards, a targeted area of work of its Metrication Department, is to have outlets supplying everyday breakbulk items trade in metric units. While not yet a majority, large and medium-sized wholesale and retail outlets, such as supermarkets and fabric stores, have converted islandwide, particularly in the capital Kingston
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
and adjoining urban centres.
Current Non-metric usage
In 2007, Jamaica still employed the FahrenheitFahrenheit
Fahrenheit is the temperature scale proposed in 1724 by, and named after, the German physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit . Within this scale, the freezing of water into ice is defined at 32 degrees, while the boiling point of water is defined to be 212 degrees...
scale. but in 2010 "The Gleaner" a local newspaper, gave temperatures in both Fahrenheit and Celsius
Most locally packaged goods and export commodities, traditional and non-traditional, are labelled in metric units, although USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
labelling regulations pose a constraint with their requirement for the use of dual units on goods exported to the country. A sticker is often used to denote the US customary units on products exported to the United States.