Cuba invests to boost citrus production

Cuba, which saw citrus exports fall by 80% over the last 20 years, will invest heavily to boost production.

The Ministry of Agriculture will invest 150 to 200 million USD over the next 12 years. Plans include the introduction of varieties resistant to pests and increasing yields with more intensive agriculture.

Techniques such as intercropping using oranges or grapefruit with other fruits like papaya, increase yields. Cuba produces guavas, bananas, pineapples, papayas and recently began the cultivation of cashew nuts and avocado.

In 1990 citrus production in Cuba covered over 112,000 hectares and produced 1 million tons of oranges and grapefruits mainly exported to the Soviet Union.

source : hoy com ec, radio reloj cu