Weed business shifts across border

We don’t usually report weed busts on this newscast, unless that is, they tip the scales in tons rather than pounds. And while recent seizures by police have been at the lower range of weight, what makes them noteworthy is the pedigree of the pot. It seems that a significant cross-border trade in marijuana has been developing for years and now much of the weed consumed in Belize is actually grown in Peten in Guatemala. Sources close to the industry tell News 5 that the increased importation is the result of a number of factors: continued crackdowns on plantations in Belize have made farming more risky and more checkpoints on major highways has made transportation more difficult. At the same time a depressed economy in Peten has turned more campesinos into marijuaneros and the glut of production has led to lower prices. Hence the increase in Guatemalans all too willing to turn a quick profit with a short trip across the frontier. While quantity appears ample, regular customers in Belize City and elsewhere continue to complain that good quality weed is still hard to find. One group of consumers apparently not complaining, however, are the large number of cruiseship passengers who find that Cuban cigars are not the only smokes available in Belize.