Platanera Río Sixaola

Bribrí, Costa Rica

An Overview Of Our Solution

In Costa Rica, banana farming has always been done in a traditional or conventional way. The use of agrochemicals to reduce pests and increase productivity has been the common practice throughout the country. There is, however, a small producer that has proved the market there is a way to produce banana in a sustainable way. With a strong conservation conviction, Platanera Río Sixaola (PRS) has decided to avoid all types of herbicides and nematicides, to reduce the stress to its soils, rivers and other ecosystems while protecting biodiversity. A pioneer in the region, and seen as an example worldwide, PRS’s multiple efforts in sustainable production, protection of the environment and the community has earned PRS multiple awards locally, regionally and worldwide.

Who is this solution impacting?

Community Type

Rural

Organization type

individual

Ecosystem (select all that apply)

Freshwater

Oceans/Coasts

Population impacted

1500 people

Size of agricultural area

275 ha

Production quantity

342.000 boxes of 18,5 Kg per year (2016)

People employed

120 women and men

Describe your solution

Having a strong conviction for best agricultural practices that are in line with environmental protection and conservation efforts has inspired PRS to look for innovative solutions to what are hardly problems in a “business as usual” world. Since its start, PRS has decided to separate itself from traditional banana production and has been as a pioneer in groundbreaking techniques that seemed impossible in the region. Environmental awareness and educational efforts with workers, communities, distributors, partners, buyers and consumers has built consciousness on everyone involved in the value chain. This is seen as an essential step towards a lasting solution to continue biodiversity efforts and soil and water protection. Technological advances, lessons learned and best practices supported by scientific research has built the technical and practical knowledge among PRS to promote actions that doesn’t exclude biodiversity or see it as a threat, rather than implementing techniques that creates an opportunity to improve livelihoods for humans and species. In early 1990’s, PRS decided to conserve its forests to provide a natural habitat for biodiversity to have a safe space. This year PRS will create a biological corridor planting over 70.000 trees with 65 types of species, (8 of them endangered). It will include the buildup of wildlife crossings over the vehicle roads. With these efforts, PRS aims to re-establish local species of flora and fauna and increase their stocks.

Describe your implementation

PRS works directly in the sustainable production of bananas applying best practices for biodiversity conservation. The creation of biocorridors & the decision not to use nematicides & herbicides not only proves the beliefs & values of how the finca is managed, but in a broader sense also proves that biodiversity & agriculture can share the same space bringing benefits for both. As an actor of change, PRS is seen as a pioneer & example throughout the region and overseas for its courage & ability to step away from conventional banana production. Their efforts in biodiversity conservation, agricultural & environmental practices are seen as innovative & groundbreaking. PRS is committed to promote gender equality, the inclusion of indigenous people & LGBTI rights, and is a member of the Costa Rican LGBTI Chamber of Commerce. Educational awareness on the benefits of conservation in biodiversity, ecosystem services & securing land & water resources has helped the community of Bribrí to acknowledge the efforts of PRS. Investing in its workers & communities on capacity development programs & trainings that enhance their capabilities to reduce pressure on natural resources, improving food security & climate change adaptation measures while reducing poverty. This belief of doing what is right for the people, land & biodiversity has led to a long-term struggle to change market perceptions of the banana industry. This has been the biggest challenge of small-scale producer such as PRS. Sadly, the efforts of conservation of soil, water & species are not evident when purchasing a banana; even less when other producers use agrochemicals to improve size, shape & color to satisfy the market’s expectations. This, however, is seen as an opportunity for PRS to create consciousness in the markets through dissemination of good agricultural practices, international forums & providing evidence of endangered species in the plantation area that demonstrates a secure and healthy habitat

External connections

Improving the technical and practical knowledge of the workers in PRS in areas such as soil management, forest management or biodiversity monitoring has been a key element where key partners and other stakeholders have been involved. PRS has worked closely with soil experts from Costa Rica, Germany and USA to learn and implement the latest findings in banana production technologies, improving soil quality and having soil monitoring systems in place to determine the health of the soil. The Asociación ANAI, a Costa Rican nonprofit organization, focuses on a highly participatory community based conservation and development initiatives. This NGO is a key partner for PRS and they work together securing Water Quality efforts in local rivers along the plantation. Monitoring of fishes has been an activity in which PRS and ANAI work together to ensure the habitat for many species and take measures to improve it. The efforts in building a biological corridor within the banana plantation will have direct impacts on the Talamanca – Caribe bio corridor, classified of national interest due to its importance towards indigenous populations and biodiversity. Although PRS does not lie within the boundaries of this significant corridor, PRS’s protected forest and bio corridor will strengthen the presence of biodiversity, providing another safe space for flora and fauna, and at the same time, increase awareness in the communities of such activities.

What is the environmental or ecological challenge you are targeting with your solution?

Incorporating conservation efforts in soil, water and biodiversity into traditional banana production practices has been the main challenge presented to banana producers worldwide. The use of agrochemicals to enhance production, maximize yields and increase harvesting frequency has been the norm. Intense exploitation of natural resources, such as soil and water, in the long term adds stress to the communities and creates an environmental catastrophe when large parcels of land are unproductive, loss fertility through its soils and water and/or groundwater sources are either depleted or polluted by hazardous substances. Conventional banana production is not far from these threats, however PRS has proven that these challenges present themselves for fincas to innovate and incorporate technologies to reduce the negative impacts in the environment and promote safe spaces for humans and nature to coexist.

Describe the context in which you are operating

PRS believes that conservation efforts and banana production can and should work together. While constructing biological corridors and inviting local and endemic species to the plantation, PRS recognizes that fertile land will be used in a non-banana-productive way, and that part of their production might risk of being damaged by insects, birds and/or other animals.
The use of agrochemicals has created immense problems throughout the world in soil degradation, watershed depletion and loss of ecosystems. PRS recognizes its soil as the most important resource it possesses. By introducing microorganisms, or applying homemade bio fertilizers to increase soil richness and health, PRS also promotes the existence of flora and micro and macroinvertebrates in the soils that might have negative impacts, such as nematodes, for banana production. This has led to continuous research on biological plague control techniques to regulate them.

How did you impact natural resource use and greenhouse gas emissions?

PRS financed many efforts to assess their efforts on the local biodiversity. In 2015, PRS invested in a biodiversity inventory which provided great numbers of species that are comparable to some national parks in Costa Rica, with 98 species of birds, 15 of mammals, 12 of amphibians, 15 of reptiles, and 23 fish species. This year, PRS developed a participatory biodiversity monitoring plan, enabling its workers to continue with the monitoring efforts building their capacity through a local institution. This increased the numbers of species, with 15 new species of birds and 6 new mammals, including the presence of big cats. Also a bat specialist, found 14 new species of bats, including 4 previously not found in banana plantations in CR. With these efforts, PRS is creating awareness and building capacities among its employees in conservation activities. With the introduction of the bio corridor, the positive impacts on biodiversity and stocks of species should remain or increase with time.

Language(s)

Spanish

Water

The hydrological footprint has always been of real concern for PRS. The finca does not tackle any freshwater source to supply their operation. Using innovative techniques such as rainwater harvesting, PRS obtains enough water to produce bio fertilizers and some of the water is also used for cleaning the fruits. After the last mentioned process, PRS uses a purification system to treat residual waters before using it back for use in the bio fertilizer production.

Food Security/Nutrition

By avoiding herbicides and insecticides there is less risk that the fruits have any sort of chemical reminder.

Economic/Sustainable Development

Increasing soil fertility and protecting freshwater sources, PRS is securing its long-term existence, and the possibility to continue producing banana in a larger timescale than conventional banana farms. These actions, reduces poverty in the communities close by, and reduces the risk of migration due to unfertile grounds or lack of water.

Climate

Reforestation programs throughout the finca and the creation of a bio corridor are adaptation methods towards climate change. Trees help to regulate the climate and sequestrate carbon having a positive effect on climate overall.

Sustainability

PRS has invested their own funds for most of the good practices they run in the finca. There are however big challenges as the price for bananas has been decreasing lately. This has led PRS to identify new financing options, and developing strategic alliances with the German distributor Cobana Fruchtring, and the GIZ, the German Cooperation Agency, to find new markets that recognize biodiversity and conservation.
Increasing the consumer’s awareness on agrochemicals and health of the banana fruit will also help small and medium producers export their product, regardless of size, color or shape that could only be obtained with agrochemicals. PRS has taken the lead and will share experiences in schools, books and international forums.

Return on investment

The cost of implementing such activities can be seen as the benefits that PRS is not receiving if they used agrochemicals to increase its yield in the production areas. This deficit in production is around 400 boxes of banana per ha, with estimates of over US$ 530.000 per year. This does not include the costs of removing the forests and using the land for banana production which would increase yields and profit as well. PRS decided to overlook these benefits as they do not represent their values and beliefs. Instead, PRS decided to invest in biological corridors, soil management plans, and environmental and agricultural sustainable practices. This has lead to a richer soil and a highly diverse area in terms of biodiversity.

How could we successfully replicate this solution elsewhere?

To begin with the replication of such actions in the banana production of Costa Rica, there must be a conscious of protecting our soils, water, workers, animals, and overall environment. While there are many banana producers that want to achieve this, there are very little changes in the way they produce bananas, so money is being invested elsewhere, while the focus should be on changing production methods, innovating techniques and capacity building. PRS agreed to make these changes regardless of the economic losses, reduced area for production or reduced yields. However, the investment that PRS made in its people, soil fertility, water sources and biodiversity proved that sustainability can be achieved and without compromising each other and that more benefits are obtained in the long-term with good agricultural practices, investing in technological advances, building capacity and doing continuous research.

YouTube URL

Platanera Final

Overview