And switching gears now…..the most recent consumer Price index for June showed the price of lettuce up 18% and the price of tomatoes down by 33% compared to the same period last year. When we asked the minister of Agriculture about these year to year fluctuations he explained that it all depended on 2 things, where the product is being sourced from and the weather. Here's why.
Jose Abelardo Mai, Minister of Agriculture & Food Security
"It Depends on where we are sourcing and from which state. Mexico is a huge country and the Central de Abastos is in Xalapa Mexico. So in Xalapa, lettuce, tomatoes everything that reaches there from all over the state, all over the Republic of Mexico and some states may have it cheap at one time and some may have it expensive, whether in some other states it may not be good for them. And so the product is expensive and so it varies but many factors may cause increase in the price of lettuce and other vegetables."
"If the weather is good for us in Belize we never import tomatoes. It is 99% of local consumption. At times you will find tomatoes that sell at $3 a bucket and at times you will find it at $25 a bucket right? Sometimes it depends on the weather, when you plant tomatoes. Right now with climate change the weather is unpredictable it varies a lot so you can plant today expect rainfall you are already harvesting, the rains come down and damage the tomatoes the price goes up and so there are many factors but climate is the most important factor here."
