Due to the delay in approval of the environmental permit, in the first stage of the project, the subsidiary of Del Monte will cultivate 650 hectares of banana, instead of the 970 hectares originally planned.

Prensa.com reports that “… The company Banapiña de Panamá, a subsidiary of Del Monte, imported 1.2 million meristems from Costa Rica, of the banana variety “gran naim”, to begin the cultivation process at the end of this month.”

See: “Banana Exports Up 7%“

Humberto Serrano, representative from the Ministry of the Presidency in the special commission for the reactivation of the banana sector in Barú, explained that “… ‘The cut in the sowing schedule is due to the fact that there was a delay in the resolution of approval of the EIA. The environmental impact study was approved in February, and according to the company, they will no longer have time to plant the 970 hectares planned for 2018, on the Jobito and Mango farms.’“

The project to reactivate banana production in Barú, province of Chiriqui, includes an investment of $100 million by Del Monte, within a period of 7 years. The plan includes the development of 10 banana plantations in an area measuring of around 4,700 hectares.  See “Bananas: Details of a $100 million Investment“