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Women lead pesticide-free cocoa production in Sixaola

Producers in the Binational Sixaola River Basin choose a healthier, more sustainable model

By IW:LEARN

September 4^th, 2024

Constanza Matarrita Funes is learning more every day about agriculture, cocoa, and the soil near the Sixaola River. Her father coordinates the work on their family's rural farm, and she is preparing to take over the responsibilities along with her younger siblings. Their farm is located in Catarina, a community near the border between Costa Rica and Panama, within the Binational Sixaola River Basin. She is learning from a new healthier model as she prepares to take the lead.

“Producing without pesticides is a better option. We take care of the soil, the air, and ourselves because agrochemicals affect our organisms”,

Constanza points out with powerful clarity.

“Microorganisms live in the soil; they fulfill a task. If we remove pasture and apply chemicals, we’re not seeing what we’re removing. The earth lacks a lot of matter that she needs. People apply pesticides to improve crops, without seeing that we’re deteriorating the soil.”

Constanza Matarrita Funes and her family produce cocoa in Catarina, part of the Sixaola River Basin.

The lesson catalyzes a transformation in local production in the Sixaola Basin. Constanza’s family grows cocoa; coconut; trees like almonds, sotacaballos, and Guanacaste to provide shade, as well as plantain. Their primary focus is on cocoa, which requires shade for proper development.

They have gained a strategic business advantage by selling all the cocoa to a company in Turrialba, which is more than 150 kilometers from Sixaola. This approach allows the family to bypass the difficult market of Talamanca in Costa Rica, where most of the Sixaola Basin is located. This market is largely dominated by bananas and plantain.

“Each of us has different abilities. My brother Leandro is very skilled at rodajear (cleaning the area surrounding the plant), while my other brother is good at preparing the plant. As for me, I specialize in applying bio inputs to the cocoa using a pump”, Constanza describes of the daily work.

The Ministry of Agriculture of Costa Rica participates of the Proyect’s process to promote a sustainable agriculture.

Transform the model and spread the word

Thanks to the support of the Proyecto Conectando Comunidades y Ecosistemas, Constanza and her family have learned about sustainable agricultural practices. They have been introduced to the concept of the crops and the soil.

“We can see the changes. My dad used pesticides on the farm. We are noticing the changes in the soil, it’s better used. We see the benefits in the land when we maintain it by only using manual techniques such as chopping or mowing by hand and machete. When you fumigate, you kill microorganisms the crops need”,

said the young rural woman.

Women lead pesticide-free cocoa production in Sixaola

The Matarrita Family is leading a positive transformation in the Binational Sixaola River Basin, and their efforts are inspiring other women in Sixaola to also embrace sustainable practices. These women are actively learning about organic inputs and are sharing their knowledge with their neighbors, creating a ripple effect of positive change in the community.

“More people can take advantage. Women always involve more people; we use it more. After I went to workshops to learn, others want to learn too”,

Constanza talks about the power and ability of women to multiply and share the knowledge they gain.

“We’re producing cocoa with the lessons of the trees. This economy improves the soil and our own lives. We are growing plantain and also fruit trees, while many people in the world are cutting trees and they don’t see all the life they’re removing”,

Constanza Matarrita Funes is part of a group of producers with whom the project Towards the Transboundary Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) of the Sixaola River Basin works. The Project accompanies producers of the Sixaola Basin to promote healthier practices and a reduction in pesticides use.

About the project

Towards the Transboundary Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) of the Sixaola River Basin shared by Costa Rica and Panama is a GEF project implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and executed by the Organization for Tropical Studies (OET) of Costa Rica.

Divulgated in communication actions as Proyecto Conectando Comunidades y Ecosistemas (traduced from Spanish as Connecting Communities and Ecosystems), it works with communities and institutions of Costa Rica and Panama to: Strengthen coordinated transboundary action; Set the conditions to achieve real water management; Restore river ecosystems; Reduce risks of disasters by flooding; and Collaborate in the reduction of the excessive agrochemicals use in banana and plantain crops.

For more information, please contact Manuel Sancho Gutiérrez, (manuel.sancho@tropicalstudies.org), visit the project page on iwlearn.net or the project page.