372 farmers attend four Soursop Cultivation Workshops conducted by Brazilian expert Dr Abel Reboucas in different areas of Belize

Published by [email protected] at March 3, 2023

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Posted: Friday, March 3, 2023. 4:59 pm CST.

Photo Credit: MAFSE

By Rubén Morales Iglesias: Three hundred seventy-two persons attended the four soursop cultivation workshops that were conducted this week by Brazilian agronomist Dr Abel Reboucas, according to Barry Palacio, National Coordinator for Non-Traditional Fruit Trees in the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security, and Enterprise (MAFSE).

Palacio said 90 people attended the fourth workshop held in San Pedro Columbia in the Toledo District on Thursday, March 2.

According to Palacio, Dr Reboucas attracted 100 Cayo District farmers at Central Farm in the Cayo District on Monday, February 27; 62 on Tuesday at the Citrus Products of Belize Limited (CPBL) in the Pomona Valley in the Stann Creek District; and 120 were present for the third workshop on Wednesday, March 1, in Trinidad in the Orange Walk District.

Dr Reboucas focuses on both theory and practical aspects of soursop cultivation. The training ties in well with the expressed intention of the Agriculture Ministry’s push to develop the soursop industry.

According to MAFSE’s National Coordinator for Non-Traditional Fruit Trees Barry Palacio, at present Belize has 400 acres of soursop. The hope is the interest shown by Belizean farmers now and last October translates into an increase in those numbers.

Dr Reboucas’ two visits have been funded by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in an effort to assist the Ministry of Agriculture on its program for Belizean farmers to move away from one-crop farming. With the help of organizations such as the FAO, MAFSE has been advising farmers to diversify their farming to include soursop, coconuts, and pitahaya (dragon fruit).

The soursop training also falls under the Sustainable Development of Resilient Value Chains – Implementation of CARICOM COVID-19 Agri-food Recovery Plan signed in October of 2020. MAFSE said the Agri-food Recovery Plan is a regional project involving Belize, Dominica, Guyana, and St. Lucia.

The Ministry of Agriculture has also been pursuing assistance in soursop training for Belizean farmers from Mexico’s National Institute for Forestry, Agricultural and Livestock Research (INIFAP), Last November, INIFAP conducted training on soursop and pitahaya cultivation for Northern farmers from the Orange Walk and Corozal Districts.

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