First organic citrus certification for Cayo farm

With prices depressed for Belize’s traditional citrus products it has long been advocated that the industry diversify its offerings. Today that effort took a small but important step forward with the certification of Belize’s first organic citrus grove. Maya Ranch in Cayo, operated by the Janus Foundation, received the European Union organic certification after testing of fruit, leaf and soil samples over a five-year period by a German laboratory. A similar inspection was carried out by Belize’s Citrus Research and Education Institute and that body has also certified the fruit as organic for export. The market for organically grown produce–that is products grown without the use of chemical insecticides, herbicides and fertilizers–is rapidly increasing worldwide as consumers become more concerned about the link between health and food intake. Because of its relative scarcity, organic produce fetches much higher prices on world markets. The Ministry of Agriculture is encouraging farmers to explore the organic production and export of other fruits like mangoes and papayas, in addition to citrus.