And while NEMO cranks out those supplies, there is some good news also from the papaya industry. Today Gilberto Vivas the manager of Fruta Bomba in Belize took us to two papaya fields: one that can be saved and one that is a write off. He told us that 50% of the 1,200 acres under production can be saved, and 50% must be written off. But he stressed, there's no need for panic.
Gilberto Rivas, Manager - Fruta Bomba Ltd.
"We more or less can say that 50% of our fields are gone. 50% of the young fields from, I would say six months or lower, are salvageable and we will be working hard for a recovery in three to four months when we will start exporting again. This company is going to recover and we might come even stronger."
Jules Vasquez,
You a lot of people out of work who are extremely frightened for the future. They are saying it will be six months, eight months, they won't work again until next year. What would you have to say to those employees of your company?
Gilberto Rivas,
"I just told you that we have over 600 acres that are salvageable. We will need workers for establishing those fields again and I would say next week, next two weeks we are taking back a good chunk of our labor force. Our planting program will continue, probably we will increase it because we plant every month. So there is nothing to fear and three, four, five months, we will be strong again."
Jules Vasquez,
What makes this plant, how do you know this plant is salvageable because for
me it looks like its leaning and I see that it has lost a lot of fruits as well?
Gilberto Rivas,
"If you can see there, you have the canopy coming out. What we want
to do is to the leaves very fast. The young leaves they have to start growing fast and you can do that with good horticultural practices like fertilization. Then from flowering to production is only five months. You are looking at a field that is about nine months old. Production just started but given the heavy winds of the Hurricane Dean and the heavy weight of the fruit, you that will happen, the gravity force on the weight, it's gone."
Jules Vasquez,
So all this is lost?
Gilberto Rivas,
"All this is lost."
Jules Vasquez,
You have six hundred acres that look more or less like this?
Gilberto Rivas,
"Yes."
Jules Vasquez,
How much is the unitary loss, how much loss in dollars?
Gilberto Rivas,
"As I told you I don't have that figure as yet. Our bosses from the US are still making that assessment."
Jules Vasquez,
Millions of dollars?
Gilberto Rivas,
"I would think so. Our planting program continues. We have our planting program for every month."
Jules Vasquez,
And so people will be employed for that?
Gilberto Rivas,
"Yes sure. We have to employ people right now because we have some acres that need to be taken care of."
Jules Vasquez
So all this concern about major job loss.
Gilberto Rivas,
"I don't think it is a major job loss. I think we will be getting
a good chunk of our labor force ready very very soon."
Jules Vasquez,
How much staff do you all employ in the fields?
Gilberto Rivas,
"In the fields we have about 900 workers, including staff."
Jules Vasquez,
And then at the Food Packers?
Gilberto Rivas,
"About 200."
Jules Vasquez,
So you all employ about 1,100 people.
Gilberto Rivas,
"Yes 1,100 to 1,200."
Jules Vasquez,
In two weeks or a month when you all stabilize, how much of that 1,200 do you think will be working?
Gilberto Rivas,
"I do not have that figure but I think it's going to be a lot."
Fruta Bomba is a wholly owned subsidiary of Brooks Tropicals, a Florida based fruit company.
