Last week we introduced you to the palm known as Xate - a wild tree that fetches such a high price in Europe and Asia that it has Guatemalans coming into Belizean territory to harvest it. As we reported, with British support, Guatemalan growers have put infrastructure in place to produce the palm in commercial quantities in a controlled environment.
Now the Government of Belize seems to be catching up. A cabinet committee comprising Ministers Johnny Briceno, Godfrey Smith and Servulo Baeza have been appointed to coordinate a policy for the development of Xate as an Industry in Belize. The rationale is that the commercialization of the Xate industry will reduce border conflicts, generate employment for persons in rural areas as well as create a new export market and foreign exchange earner for Belize. What's more the British are providing startup funding and expertise.
The international markets for the palm stands at somewhere between 1 and 2½ billion dollars.
7NEWS produced for broadcast by News Director Jules Vasquez
7NEWs edited for the internet by Keith Swift