Costa Rican producers of organic pineapples recently received good news: the Organic Multisector Consultation Instance of the United States Department of Agriculture (NOBS) decided, unanimously, to maintain the use of ethylene gas for floral induction, which ensures the production to maintain the supply of the US market, stated the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG).
"The NOBS recognized the importance of using ethylene gas in pest management in pineapple crops, as well as the need to standardize the harvest in organic production fields," stated Arturo Solorzano, the Director of the National Institute of Innovation and Technology Transfer, INTA, who participated in the meeting as an official envoy of the Costa Rican Agricultural Sector.
Ethylene gas is used in the cultivation of organic pineapple to induce flowering and thus avoid the natural flowering that generates fruits of different sizes and attracts pests to the crop.
The NOBS also recognized the articulated work that Costa Rica's official sector and productive sector were performing and suggested the General Director of the USDA Organic Program that US authorities recognize Costa Rica's national organic agriculture certification model.
The Director of INTA was able to explore possibilities of alliances for future research of products that can be used in the organic production of various crops.
Costa Rica supplies 95% of the organic pineapple market in the United States.
Source: laregion.cr
