It was a long time ago when the Morne Rouge Socomor factory processed 24 tons of fruit per year, from almost 200 producers, but luckily a few farmers still continue to grow pineapples. They have grouped together to create a cooperative in order to sell their merchandise.
William Honoré remains confident about the future of pineapple farming in Martinique. The 29 year old son of a pineapple producer works with his family over 10 hectares of land. He was already driving a tractor at 14 and went on to carry out agricultural studies.
He explains that farming pineapples, “demands patience, lots of effort, labour, work and the unexpected.” Like other producers in the area, William Honoré takes most of his harvest to the Lorrain cooperative where it is then sold in the large shops in the region. The rest is sold at agricultural markets.
He is pleased that politicians in Martinique are taking an interest in pineapple farming, “It is good to achieve funds, but it is not enough to grow good pineapples, work and passion for the job count, one must be attentive at each stage of the plant’s development, check that disease does not ruin a crop, and trust Mother Nature.”
Each of William Honoré’s crops have 12,000 pineapple plants which give about 10,000 fruits. Every month about 500 to 700 discards are transplanted from their mother plant. They must then be sorted and transported to ground which is preferably covered in film to avoid weeds. Then comes the moment for floral induction treatment which triggers simultaneous flowering over the whole crop, giving a uniform harvest. William hires 5 employees full time. When the field is in harvest, the fruit is picked every three days, with 700 to 800 fruits per ton, sold at €2.50/kilo to the consumer.