Colombia is well-known for its production of bananas, coffee and sugar cane, but other tropical export crops are scarce. Private business Agrofuturo Colombia aims to change that through profitable projects in pineapples, cocoa, palm oil and reforestation.  From May 31-Jun. 2, the company will host Expo Agrofuturo in the city of Medellin, with more than 10,000 participants expected. Project developer Camilo Perez tells www.freshfruitportal.com about what these projects could bring to investors and local communities.

Perez says the event will attract businesses across the agricultural supply chain, including banks and international investors, while Agrofuturo is hoping to raise US$7 million for its projects.

"Colombia has great potential to develop its fruit industry. We have available land, available soil, and we are behind compared to our neighboring countries.

"Agrofuturo has 700 hectares of cocoa plantations at the moment that are established with a value of US$30 million, and its proven to be very profitable; it currently goes to the local market but we have the idea to grow it to the level where we can export overseas," he says.

He says two pineapple projects are currently in discussion; one for 20ha and the other for 100ha, with an annual cost of US$25,000 per hectare. Colombia currently only accounts for 1% of global pineapple production, but Perez believes that figure can definitely grow.

"For cocoa you have 24% profitability on average for the 20 years, while for pineapples you're looking at eight years with 29% profitability each year."

"We don’t have palm oil plantations yet but it is part of our strategy in the sector."

Projects for these three crops are slated for the San Juan de Urabá region of Antioquia in the country's north, where there is an existing port infrastructure for exports and a well-established banana industry.

He says the crops are to be planted in areas that were previously used for livestock.

"That way they don't have any trees, and so the crops don’t have an effect on any existing biodiversity; it's not like in Costa Rica and other places where you have to chop down forest to produce more pineapples.

"These projects are also much more profitable than livestock."

Close to Medellin the company also has commercial reforestation projects planned with eucalyptus, teak and white beech trees, with two cycles of eight years.

"In Colombia, 68% of the trees are naturally growing and our country is rich in biodiversity, so having reforestation projects in livestock areas means the native trees can still be protected."

A way out for local communities

Perez highlights there are still some risks with narco-trafficking groups in Urabá, but alternative horticultural crops are a good way to help break the cycle of violence.

"It’s not an issue in Medellin but in Urabá it is. Part of the problem of narco-trafficking has to do with the lack of opportunities in these areas, but these crop projects need intensive labor and provide opportunity, and local communities appreciate that.

"You need one employee for every two hectares of a cocoa plantation, so that’s about 3,000 positions for the project we have proposed."

www.freshfruitportal.com