Belize’s Agricultural Sector sees growth, but Sugar Cane Industry needs reform – Minister of Agriculture, Jose Abelardo Mai

Published by [email protected] at August 13, 2024

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Posted: Tuesday, August 13, 2024. 9:33 pm CST.

Minister of Agriculture, Food Security, and Enterprise, Jose Abelardo Mai, delivering remarks at Ministry’s Annual General Meeting in Spanish Lookout on Thursday, August 8 – Photo Credit: MAFSE

By Rubén Morales Iglesias: Minister of Agriculture, Food Security, and Enterprise, Jose Abelardo Mai, highlighted the growth in Belize’s agricultural sector, including citrus, bananas, grains, shrimp, and livestock, in his remarks at the Ministry’s Annual General Meeting in Spanish Lookout on Thursday, August 8. However, Mai emphasized that the sugar cane industry must change its business practices to flourish.

“We have grown significantly, and if you try to remember where we were when we took Government in 2020, we were in shambles. The economy was zero. And slowly, we started to work towards improving the sector, ensuring that food security or food availability was there for the people of this country,” Mai said in setting up his review of the different agricultural products.

Mai first noted the challenges faced by the citrus industry. He said that despite finding the citrus industry as a dying industry four years ago and that last year’s crop was at its lowest ever, things are looking up.

“There’s still a silver lining as the reports we’re getting is that the new varieties that were planted seem to be showing good results and tolerance of the citrus greening disease,” he said.

“There’s a lot of work yet to do in this citrus industry.”

The banana industry is also weathering the storm, he said.

“Bananas, because of climate change and past storms, suffered tremendously, but again this year we’ve seen the rebound in the banana industry,” Mai stated.

Shrimp – Photo Credit: MAFSE

Switching to the shrimp industry, Mai highlighted its recovery. The Minister said that after the industry was destroyed due to the Early Mortality Syndrome ten years ago in 2014 and after losing the Mexico export market, the industry is rebounding.

“Today, we have seen again [that] with new technology, with new and innovative technology, that industry is slowly coming back and in the very near future, we will see a significant increase. And that will be supported by the reopening of an export market to Mexico for shrimp,” the Agriculture Minister said.

He then went on to say the grain industry, particularly soybean and corn, is on solid footing, so much so that exports are increasing.

“In the grain industry, Belize is doing significantly well at the regional level. This is now our third year that we are self-sufficient in soybean production,” Mai said.

Belize is the only country in Central America that produces enough soybean to feed its livestock and has surplus to export to Central America and the Caribbean.

“There is no other country in the region, Central America and the Caribbean, that has that ability,” Mai said, adding that the same can be said for corn.

Soybean field – Photo Credit: MAFSE

Another industry that is booming is the livestock industry.

“Our last figures indicate that the industry is worth $90 million,” Minister Mai said.

As to the sugar industry, which incidentally has a Commission of Inquiry studying it to see how it can be improved, Mai said the industry must change the way it conducts business.

“We continue to struggle, we continue to dialogue to ensure that the sugar industry continues to be viable in this country,” the Agriculture Minister said.

“It is a very difficult thing to fight the large multinationals. It’s never an easy thing, but I will say to you that I am satisfied today that we see that the Commission of Inquiry is well advanced. And I hope to see some recommendations made by the Commission of Inquiry so that we can ensure that the farmers are being treated fairly, that the miller is being treated fairly. It is only so that any industry will grow if everybody is treated fairly.”

Mai said he would like the Commission of Inquiry to make recommendations on a new payment structure for the farmers who have to make loans yearly because of the payment structure under which they go 11 months without being paid.

Sugar cane field

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