Bananas and Food Security - Bioversity International

Amérique Latine - Caraïbes / Latin America - Caribbean : M. Cortès et al.
Introduction
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During the last decades the agriculture of Puerto Rico has undergone a transformation
from an agrarian society into an industrial one. During the 50s the main cultivated crops
were sugar cane, tobacco and coffee. At present, the economically important products
are coffee, plantains and ornamental plants. In 1997-98, plantains contributed to the
Agricultural Gross Income (AGI) with $45 million. This represents 6.3 % of the AGI.
Plantains represent 72% of farinaceous crops (US$62.5 million).
Plantain producers in Puerto Rico were usually located in the mountain zone, where
they intercropped plantains with coffee, bananas and citrus trees. In the last decade, the
younger farmers with better academic background have established monocrop
plantations on the coastal lowlands of the island. In this area, they can produce better
quality fruits, reducing production and mechanisation costs. Some farmers still grow
plantains in the mountain zone, but the production costs are higher and the income is
lower. This is complicated by the absence of an organised system to coordinate planting
dates, prices, marketing techniques, etc.
During recent years, the lack of a proper marketing system was mentioned as one of
the main problems for the agricultural sector of Puerto Rico. This sector has considered
the establishment of marketing orders or some kind of structure that could organise the
local marketing system properly. Marketing orders were established in the United States
in 1937 and the basic law provisions have remained without changes since then,
although the number of included crops has increased. These orders were established
with the purpose of organizing the agricultural sectors in order to allow the government
to transfer marketing orders to the farmers. The final goal is that the sector can take
control over its own activities and the government becomes a facilitator. Today, there are
about 35 active marketing orders in the United States.
Marketing order system
After studying the marketing order system in the United States and considering the
feasibility of its establishment in Puerto Rico, the law 238 was approved in
September 1996, establishing marketing orders. The difference between a marketing
order and other types of structures, such as cooperatives and societies, is its mandatory
character. A marketing order is established in a determined place with specific
conditions, taking into account farmers’ conditions and specific needs of the sector.
Currently, Puerto Rico is in the process of organizing marketing orders, establishing the
Board of Directors, etc. The law has a voluntary character, although the government, as
part of its policy, can establish particular benefits, which will help organised farmers and
eventually bring all producers to become members of this organisation. As usual, this law
has brought resistance from some farmers, but the great majority support it.
There are three basic provisions about this law: quality control, supply control and
promotion support. Regarding quality control, the law establishes the classification of
the product according to quality grade, size and maturity level. Size control consists of