The expansion of the agricultural cooperative Coagrisan continues unabated. In addition to a continual improvement in terms of volume and quality of production, COAGRISAN plans to focus on organic products.
After the excellent results of Coagrisan organic bananas, the cooperative, led by Juan José del Pino decided to invest in the production of organic tomatoes. Del Pino said that this decision is supported by the customers themselves.
General Manager, Jacinto Godoy, explained that the current production model is based on sustainability and respect for the environment. 100% of the cultivation area is controlled by various techniques with a minimal use of active ingredients (phyto-sanitary products, coconut fiber, and rock wool substrates), and the use of recirculation and waste reduction in the form of a zero waste model.
Godoy: "In addition, we have been attempting for the last two years to use the plant waste from the crops with the aid of composting techniques. However, bureaucratic hurdles from the government prevent us from using the necessary compost." Godoy added that "Our idea is to plant a reasonable number in the first year, as a test, in Coagrisan's R&D+i greenhouse, to see how the crop, the market and the customers respond. Based on the response, which is expected to be positive (considering the results achieved with the organic bananas), between 30 and 40% of the tomato cultivation area will be converted to organic in the coming years. Depending on the demand in the market, we could expand this to 100%," confirms Godoy.
Coagrisan is convinced that organic farming is booming, as demand in the coming years will continue to increase. Therefore, the goal is to achieve a stable position as soon as possible. The new organic production is destined for export to Europe as the most important market.