Update: News agency EFE has since reported the National Museum of Costa Rica has ordered a complete archeological survey of 600 hectares of pineapple production land belonging to Pindeco.

A Costa Rican environmental group has reportedly sent a letter to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) asking it to protect lands surrounding archeological sites where Del Monte owns pineapple plantations. 

Local media El Nuevo Diario reported the Ecologist Federation (Fecon) had said the fruit-growing operations belonging to the multinational's subsidiary Pindeco were in close proximity to a protected site.

In May the Costa Rican government ordered the suspension of Pindeco’s ‘Osa’ pineapple project, days after it had also announced a ban on the herbicide bromacil.

Following on-farm inspections on May 9, the National Environmental Technical Secretariat (Setena) announced it had ordered the suspension of the project until Pindeco can readapt its operational proposal for the area, newspaper La Nación reported.

In this latest development, a Fecon spokesperson explained the letter had been signed by "hundreds of people and organizations", according to El Nuevo Diario. 

It was sent to Montserrat Martell, a Costa Rican representative of UNESCO's World Heritage Center.

The letter asks the entity to include Pindeco's pineapple project in the expansion of the "heritage impact study" on the archeological areas containing pre-Colombian stone spheres, located in the Osa area of southern Costa Rica's Puntarenas province.

In the study being carried out by UNESCO, the El Diquís hydroelectric protect and International Osa Airport are also included, the story reported.

Fecon has asked the organization to widen its protection to areas where pineapples are due to be planted, which it says are close to are archeological sites "considered to be of important heritage and of a high monumental character."

It added that a pineapple farm did not just involve the plants, but also diverse infrastructure, machinery and materials that could damage the stones.

After granting environmental permission to the project last December, Setena suspended it on May 18 "various aspects" related to the archeological sites were resolved.

At the time of writing, Del Monte had not replied to request for comment. 

Photo: www.shutterstock.com

www.freshfruitportal.com