Following the detection of an outbreak of giant African snail in Costa Rica, in the community of Curubande in the canton of Liberia in Guanacaste, local authorities declared a National Phytosanitary Emergency.
The objective of this declaration is to prevent the spread of the plague, putting at risk the national agriculture, public health and the environment, informed the State Phytosanitary Service (SFE).
In order to streamline the processes of import and export of agricultural, livestock and hydrobiological inputs and products, the virtual platform VISAR online was enabled in Guatemala.
This tool is aimed at the productive sectors, importers of products of animal and vegetable origin, agricultural inputs and exporters of agricultural, livestock and hydrobiological products, which will now reduce time in their efforts with the use of cutting-edge technology, typical of the digital era, informed the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food (MAGA).
Last year, Central America assigned $784 million to fertilizer imports, 4% more than in 2019, with Nicaragua, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador being the markets that accounted for the increase in regional purchases.
Figures from the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="fertilizer"].
Through information solutions based on the use of satellite photos, the application of classification models and the implementation of machine learning algorithms, it is possible to optimize the management of large plantations and minimize the risks faced by crops that affect profitability per hectare planted.
The growing availability of data that exists today is leading companies to seek new ways and tools to take advantage of this huge wave of information that is being generated in different business sectors.
In recent years, regional avocado exports have gained importance, as in 2018 they amounted to $2.8 million, in 2019 they climbed to $10.9 million and in 2020 they rose to $11.9 million.
Figures from the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with the graph"]
Due to the potential that Guatemala has and the commercial opportunities that are envisioned for the future, local authorities will begin to take steps so that the fruit harvested in the country is accepted in the U.S., the main importing market for the product.
In order to start with the procedures to approve the phytosanitary controls imposed by U.S. authorities, Guatemala is making an inventory of pests in the crop.
Betting on the latest technology projects, agriculture 4.0 and seeking alternative products derived from sugarcane so as not to depend on international prices, are some of the lines of action on which the Guatemalan sugar sector will focus in the coming years.
Although sugar prices in the international market have improved between October 2020 and April 2021, in previous years there was a downward trend that pressured mills to explore new market opportunities for sugarcane-derived products.
Some of the technological tools that will be used in the coming years to increase agricultural productivity include the use of devices connected to the Internet that can create self-regulating microclimates in greenhouses and crop monitoring through aerial images.
Business Intelligence solutions used by agricultural companies have the ability to transform maps and images into structured data that can be used for decision making.
From January to September 2020 exports from Central America of palm oil and its fractions totaled $648 million, an amount that exceeds by 12% what was reported in the same period of 2019.
Figures from the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with the graphic"]
From January to September 2020, companies in the region bought corn abroad for $753 million, 10% more than what was reported in the same period of 2019, a variation that is explained by the rise in imports from Nicaragua, Guatemala, Honduras and Panama.
Figures from the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with the graph"]
From January to September 2020, Central American vegetable exports totaled $229 million, 44% more than what was reported in the same period of 2019, an increase that is largely explained by the behavior of sales to U.S. companies.
Figures from the Trade Intelligence unit of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with the graphic"]
As a result of a resurgence of the flying locust plague that has been reported in recent weeks, Guatemala has decided to declare a State of Phytosanitary Emergency.
There has been a new outbreak of the flying locust plague identified under the scientific name "Shistocerca piceifrons (Walker)" directly affecting the department of Peten, so a State of Emergency is issued, explains one of the recitals of the Ministerial Agreement 18-2021, of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food (Maga).
Due to the new outbreak of flying locusts, farmers in the department of Peten report that the pest has destroyed large areas of corn and bean crops.
Days ago, the International Regional Organization for Agricultural Health (OIRSA) warned that a locust swarm entered Guatemala from the border area with Yucatan, Mexico.
After reports of flying locusts entering Guatemala from the border area with the Yucatan, Mexico, Salvadoran authorities have declared themselves on alert because of the threat they could represent to local crops.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) is prepared to face the threat of a flying locust (Schistocerca piceifrons piceifrons) that could cause damage or loss to crops in our territory, details an official statement dated January 12, 2021.
From January to June 2020, Central American vegetable exports totaled $168 million, and sales to U.S. companies grew by 67% when compared to exports in the same period in 2019.
Figures from the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with graph"]
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