Pineapple monoculture in Costa Rica has caused severe environmental and social damage. This agroindustrial activity experienced a fast 600% growth in the past 9 years, becoming one of the major economic activities in the country.

One of the most symbolic cases is in the communities of Cairo, Luiciana and Francia de Siquirres. A subsidiary of Del Monte transnational corporation is responsible for the pollution of the water source of these communities.

For the past three years, the people have been getting water in water tankers because their traditional water sources are now polluted. Every two days the trucks distribute drinking water because the tap water is polluted with the herbicide Bromacil.

Besides, the pineapple expansion has had consequences on peasant agriculture and cattle ranching as a result of the stable fly (Stomoxys calcitrans) that attacks animals in a 10 kilometer radius, stinging them and sucking their blood. This plague is the result of the bad waste management of the pineapple harvest, causing the cattle to lose up to one kilo of weight a day.

As a result of this, the neighbors of the Santa Rosa de la Rita community oppose the installation of a pineapple farm that would have a 280 hectare area. The company in charge, Piñas Tropicales GAC S.A., has resorted to forging information to get social approval for the project.

The company actually submitted an Environmental Management Plan and a Socio-Economic Report to the state authorities claiming that the community was consulted, something which the neighbors deny.

Real World Radio spoke with some members of the community after a meeting on Saturday to analyze the documents filed by the company.

One of them is Fernando Agüero Valverde, for whom industrial pineapple is inconvenient based on the experiences of the neighboring towns.

“The pineapple is monoculture”, says Fernando, “it brings about plagues and diseases, which have affected the health of neighboring populations”.

This is not the first attempt to install a monoculture plantation. Ponds and wetlands have dried out in the 280-hectare plot of land, increasing the vulnerability of the neighboring houses to flood, as well as the negative impact on their only water source.

Julio Valverde Quiroz, a farmer of the area, has produced organic food for fifteen years. He told us about the impacts they are already suffering as a result of the pineapple and coconut monoculture plantations.

The main square of his community, the school, even the church would be affected by the installation of this plot of land, said Julio.

Photo: http://www.elpais.cr