LatinaLista —
Campaign: Indigenous Innovation — Revolutionizing Cacao in Belize
Maya Mountain Cacao is planting an organic agro-forestry cocoa farm with the indigenous Maya. Maya Mountain Cacao connects 330 small-producer cacao farmers in southern Belize to the fine chocolate industry in the United States.
The farmers whom they work with are primarily indigenous Maya who are at or below the poverty line. Agriculture is their main source of income, and cacao is the main cash crop in this area.
In Belize, the delicious chocolate industry is enabling farmers to support their families’ health, children’s education, and lives.
Over the past few years, demand for Belizean cacao has grown wildly. To put it in perspective, Maya Mountain Cacao currently supplies 6 chocolate makers, with over 70 on their wait list.
They’ve invested heavily in expanding the national production so they can bring farmers as much value as possible. And now they’ve taken the next step by partnering with the community and local leadership to build a productive, world-class cacao Demonstration Farm.
The farm will bring social, environmental, economic and educational benefit to Belizean farmer families.
With $40,000 they’ll be able to plant 120 acres of cacao agroforestry — complete with timber trees for shade, and diverse intercrops.
Funds will be used to set up nurseries, pay the salaries for their hardworking farmers, and to do agricultural, compost, and maintenance trainings.
Once the farm is in blossom and producing cacao, it will not only double Maya Mountain Cacao’s current volume but will also be fully financially sustainable and a source of ongoing employment and economic opportunity for rural Belizean Maya communities.
Campaign ends on November 7.
