by Rod Hughes

Exports of root crops to the United States, such as manioc root (yuca) destined for ethnic Latin consumption, are encountering problems of uncertain quality and volatile prices at their destination, according to the National Production Council. Some pumpkin types of crops also are experiencing the same woes.

The quality problem is blamed on a lack of organization on the part of farmers, some of whom are tilling small family plots. In some cases, areas that normally produce such crops are being diverted to the more lucrative pineapple. But one aspect is chronic: lack of modernization of traditional farming methods, says the council.

Costa Rica has been the principal supplier of tuber crops for Hispanic consumption for a long time. Some 90% of the starchy root used in the U.S. is grown here, mostly on small plots using rustic methods, although larger farmers have noted the profits in the crop and have brought some mechanization to the field.

In 2007, this country exported more than $61 million in root crops and another $2.4 million in the tropical ayote vegetable, a vine crop. But not all the farmers’ headaches are of their own making. Of late the market is suffering wild price fluctuations. The price for a 40 lbs. box of yuca has risen from $9 to $12 and soared to $29, drawing Nicaragua and Ecuador into the market as competitors. A larger supply may cause a disastrous drop in price.

The Miami office of the National Production Council warns that lower Costa Rican production caused the price rise as well, often failing to fulfill standing orders. Experts added that the shift to pineapple production may be counterproductive. That market will probably be saturated soon, says Costa Rican agricultural experts in Miami.

Competition is getting fierce. Panama, for example, has entered the ayote market, ironically using advanced techniques developed in Costa Rica to produce higher quality but often ignored by the small Tico farmer. Ginger, a non-traditional crop shipped from here in small quantities, is also finding a competitor in the U.S. market: Taiwan is now edging past this country as a supplier of the spice.

by Rod Hughes

The mini-drought that brought such grief to the northern section of the country ended last week with long soaking rains. In just three days, Friday through Sunday, leaden skies dumped half the average precipitation for May and more rains continued in the first three days of this week.

But for great areas of the northern sector, the damage had already been done in the form of dry wells, failed crops and dried up pastures that resulted in the deaths of some 300 cattle. The rains started early in April, leading some farmers to plant early, betting on the heavy rains predicted for this year. But the few days of rain stopped abruptly and early May was unseasonably dry.

The pastures will return slowly but the Ministry of Agriculture promised aid to cattle ranchers in the form of dry fodder until the those grazing areas are long enough to provide sustenance. Sheep can eat short grass because of their razor sharp incisors but cows munch grass by wrapping their tongues around the blades and jerking their heads.

The rising water table will also fill the wells. The national water and sewer system, A y A in the Spanish acronym, was forced to send tankers full of potable water to some rural communities.

The rain in Spain may fall mainly on the plain, according to the old English pronunciation exercise, but in Costa Rica, it falls mainly in the mountains. Precipitation in San Jose during the month was 137 liters per square meter, far below the 225.9 average for the past nine years for May. During the first two weeks of the month hardly a drop fell in most areas of the Central Valley.

Weatherman Juan Diego Naranjo told the daily La Nacion yesterday that a tropical storm is passing over the country and will probably bring even more rains into tomorrow. Most areas of the Central Valley received rain off and on last night and this morning. Although steady, the rains have largely been gentler than the violent tropical cloudbursts that often assault the metropolitan area. Still, cautions Naranjo, the ground is now saturated and people living in low-lying areas should watch the level of nearby rivers.