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FFI’s Belizean partner promotes organic cacao and ‘Race against Fire’

23/04/2008

FFI’s partner in Belize, the Ya’axché Conservation Trust (YCT), recently held several educational events to support their efforts to conserve the Golden Stream Watershed, one of Central America’s most important stretches of rainforest.

YCT’s agroforestry training programme is designed to encourage local people to manage their forests in an eco-friendly way and consider options for more sustainable livelihoods. In the recent events, men and women from three rural Maya communities in Belize learned new skills in harvesting, fermenting, and drying organic cacao, in a bid to lessen their impact on the fragile forest habitat.

Demonstrations were also given on the cultivation of other valuable crops such as vanilla (see photo below), which can be inter-cropped with cacao, increasing both economic and biological diversity.

YCT, supported by FFI, provides technical assistance and training to 65 farmers in southern Belize. This involves YCT’s Agroforestry and Outreach officers working directly with farmers ‘on the ground’ to develop forest-friendly, organic farms.

As an agricultural option, organic cacao farming maintains a high level of biodiversity, especially when intercropped with other native species such as vanilla, ginger, mango and timber trees. In the Maya culture cacao is still considered a sacred crop. It currently also has a guaranteed market in southern Belize through the local Toledo Cacao Grower’s Association and a contract with Green & Black’s, which buys 100% of produce.

In addition to the training events, YCT recently held its fifth annual ‘Race against Fire’. Approximately 600 villagers attended the community event, the highlight of which was a 15 mile bicycle race undertaken by over two dozen cyclists from Bladen Bridge to Golden Stream Bridge.

The day provided a great opportunity to bring together these rural communities while at the same time raising awareness of the dangers, prevention and management of forest fires this dry season.

FFI Communications contact:

Rebecca Foges
Communications Officer
Tel: +44 (0)1223 579 491
rebecca.foges@fauna-flora.org