Issue #45 - Spring 2022 of The BELIZE AG REPORT is online here

Big Falls Ranch: Rice Production (Part 2), By Feucht/Roberson
As described in part 1 of this article The Bevis family, who leased 11,000 acres of land along the Belize River in 1964, chose rice as the most viable commercial cash crop to grow while developing a cattle ranching operation. The two main crops at that time in Belize (British Honduras) were citrus in the south and sugar cane in the north. The rest of the country, including Big Falls, was relatively undeveloped with no infrastructure.

Field Survey: Collection and Analysis of Data on Pesticide Poisoning Incidents among Farmers in Belize 2021, By Dr. Sherlene Enriquez-Savery & Mr. Sean Sebastian
In June 2020, the University of Belize (UB) administered a field survey, Collection and Analysis of Data on Pesticide Poisoning Incidents among Farmers in Belize. The field survey was a partnership between UB and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The Rotterdam Convention of the United Nations, to which Belize is a Party, has a core objective of mitigating the adverse effects of pesticides on human health.

Guest Editorial By Ed Boles, PhD Aquatic Ecologist
Representatives of Vulcan Materials Company (VMC), headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, visited Belize on a fact- finding mission in December, 2019, and alerted many people of the Stann Creek District coastal area that the company intended to purchase the 6,000 hectare (15,000 acre) White Ridge Farm. They sent down a company team to conduct test borings of the karst and granite rock in early 2020.

Review of 2020 & 2021 Pesticides Imports Data
Records of imports data for this period indicate that there was an increase in importations of pesticides and its related substances compared to previous years. Even though the pandemic was hitting Belize, the agriculture sector did not collapse. The reasons for an increase in importation can be attributed to the following:

Lemongrass Oil Made in Belize By Dr. Thomas Mathew
Our experimentation to make lemongrass oil at the Belize Spice Farm was a success. We found out that it takes 450 lbs. of lemon grass cuttings to produce about 10 oz. of oil. Many distilleries produce almost double the amount; as we gain more experience with harvesting and distillation, we hope to match the yield of big time growers.

Sorrel (Roselle): Part 2 By Deborah Harder and Dottie Feucht
Issue 44 of the Belize Ag Report covered the introduction and history of sorrel (Hibiscus sabdariffa). Being popular in subtropical regions all over the world, it has many local names and uses. Although countries in Africa and Southeast Asia are the major suppliers on the global market, Mexico and Jamaica are important suppliers in our region. Dried sorrel is sold in the local produce markets.

Rainfall 2020 & 2021
Although the trend of lower rainfall in northern Belize, and higher rainfall in the south still remains generally true, much variation can be seen within each area.

Hemp as Food By William Grimshaw
For many years it was believed that hemp was destined only for developed nations; they make the rules and they have the resources; Belize is too small and we don't have enough farmers. Sure, some of those things may be true, but not entirely. Delving deep into what hemp is, we come across its roots, spread far and wide, branching into hundreds if not thousands of extensions of itself.

HLB - Citrus Greening: Performance Nutrition Leading the Way By John Flynn
Comments like "I have tried everything under the sun" by frustrated citrus growers trying to solve the greening disease were widely heard over the past several years. However, those who have stopped what they have been doing, including applying pesticides, and begun the Performance Nutrition program, adding organic matter and microbials to the soil and allowing the trees time to heal are saying "I doubted that merely changing agronomic practices I could produce citrus again.

Belize Coconut National Stakeholder Platform and the Lead Farm Approach By Omaira Avila Rostant
The 2nd phase of the Coconut Development project funded by the European Union (EU) and CARIFORUM through the Alliences for Coconut Industry Development Expansion and Enhanced Support for the Caribbean is being implemented in the Caribbean since 2019 by the International Trade Centre (ITC) and the Caribbean.

A Carbon Friendly Beef Enterprise - Is It Possible? By Christine Jones, PhD
There are many misconceptions surrounding the contribution of livestock to climate change. The United Nations publication, 'Livestock's Long Shadow' (1), resulted in calls from around the world for reduced meat consumption on the basis that livestock were a major contributor to greenhouse gases. Concerns have also been expressed that meat consumption has a detrimental effect on human health.

Homemade Health: Immune System Reboot By Marguerite Fly Bevis, RN, BSN
The old Creole saying, "prevention betta dan cure", is the answer to the question: how can we boost immunity? Our first thought is take vitamins and supplements and to figure out which ones are essential and why. Research reveals there are also other things we can do and ways we adapt our lifestyle to improve our chances of resisting illness.

Successful Papaya Growing By Dr. Sophia Clarke
As we all know papaya is delicious, commands a good sale price, and has many excellent nutritional and medicinal properties. Growing organically is much the better for health, but as I was warned by Cergio Mai of BAHA Plant Health, "this will be a challenge!" due to the fact that papaya is susceptible to many diseases and pests. I can testify to that as we have found on our farm in Cayo. So I wanted to find out how we could be more successful growers of papaya.

Agave: The Century Plant of Belize By Michael Richardson
The landmark ornamental Agave americana, commonly known as the "century plant" has been in Belize for centuries. Known as maguey in Mexico, the hardy succulent is native to hot, arid regions of the Americas. Agave is a genus of monocots with dozens of species. Although often misidentified as a perennial, the century plant is actually a monocarpic (meaning that each rosette dies after flowering and fruiting) multiannual since each spined rosette flowers only once with a thirty-foot bloom mast or quiote and then dies.

Easy Greens to Grow in Belize By Dr. Mandy Tsang
It has been about 10 years since I last wrote an article for the Belize Ag Report. Just to fill you in on my background: my husband and I are both medical doctors who came to Belize 18 years ago. We wanted to grow our own food with our own hands and dig in the dirt. In short, we have become sustenance farmers. I understand that many people would not put themselves into a position of trying to survive solely on what they grow.

Ta'nah Farmers Group By Beth Roberson
In March 0f 2021, a group of experienced and determined farmers of San Antonio, Cayo District*, began meeting together every 2 weeks, with the aim of working in coordination with each other to increase productivity and profitability for their individual farms. Their efforts were rewarded when on 8 September 2021, the Ta'nah Farmers Group, comprised of 25 men and women farmers, was officially registered and recognized as an association.

New Opportunity for an Alternative to Wheat: Sorghum, aka Milo and Maecillo By Maruja Vargas
Sorghum, (Sorghum bicolor) is an ancient grain better known as milo in Belize and maecillo in Latin America. It has been cultivated for 5,000 years and is one of the five principal grain staples of the world. Over 500 million people in 30 countries rely on sorghum as their main grain staple. Sorghum is among the most efficient crops in the conversion of solar energy and is very drought tolerant, requiring only 6 inches of annual rainfall which is 30% less water than other grains.

SPANISH LOOKOUT COMMUNITY CROP STATISTICS for the year 2020 - 2021

The 7th Spanish Lookout Industrial / Commercial Expo
Was held on 26th and 27th March 2022. There were 180 booths from all over Belize. Next Expo: 2024

Pesticide poisoning in Belize: Addressing the upward trend
The issue of pesticide poisoning among farmers and farm workers appears to be a growing area of concern in Belize that authorities are now seeking to address. A recent study conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with the University of Belize, revealed that there seemed to be a substantial increase in the cases of accidental pesticide poisoning in the year 2021, compared to the previous two years. These findings were presented during a workshop on Pesticide Poisoning among Farmers and Farm Workers in Belize held virtually on February 24, 2022.

Field Survey: Collection and Analysis of Data on Pesticide Poisoning Incidents among Farmers in Belize 2021
In June 2020, the University of Belize (UB) administered a field survey titled; Collection and Analysis of Data on Pesticide Poisoning Incidents among Farmers in Belize. The field Survey was a partnership between UB and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

Letters to the Editor

Ag Briefs

Agriculture Prices At A Glance

and more!...