Organization, productive diversification and commercialization for Mayan communities in Guatemala (PROCACHI)

With financial backing from the FOMIN fund of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the Centre for International Studies and Cooperation (CECI) and the Cardamom Exporters Association of Guatemala are implementing a participative model involving organization, production diversification and commercialization to help generate new income for 15,000 small-scale Mayan producers in the central departments of Alta Verapaz, Baja Verapaz and El Quiche and in the areas bordering the Río Chixoy basin.

The goal of the project is to find a solution to two inter-related problems: the near total dependence on cardamom as the main commercial crop for small-scale producers and the lack of production opportunities that could generate additional revenues, which would improve these producers’ living conditions.

One main project component is based on establishing a producer community organization. The project will then help enhance techniques for producing cardamom and other commercial crops. Community agriculture promotors will create and set up demonstration plots to introduce alternative species and other commercial crops (e.g., animal feed). A third group of activities will focus on post-harvest procedures that add value to products (e.g., drying and packaging), which will also help create relationships with local markets. The model also involves doing business with a group of cardamom and horticulture export companies that could purchase the new crops, which would be locally and sustainably produced.

Objective and activities:

Cardamom is the sole production of an estimated 350,000 producers in Guatemala. These producers do not have any sort of agricultural organization due to the area’s geographic distribution and characteristics. This makes it difficult for producers to negotiate better prices, work on coordinated production plans, purchase inputs in bulk and gain access to farm credit.

Cardamom production makes up about 3% of Guatemala’s exports. Primarily grown by small-scale producers, this "queen of spices" is sold in food markets across India, Europe and the Middle East. While producers depend on this crop, the cardamom production chain is quite fragmented. This, in addition to the facts that market prices are very low and the plants are often affected by epidemics, means that producers earn very little by growing the crop.

PROCACHI aims to increase the revenues of central Guatemala’s rural communities. To achieve this, the project will work to build a new organizational model, increase agricultural diversity and commercialize agricultural products for small-scale producers in the departments of Alta Verapaz, Baja Verapaz, El Quiché, Huehuetenango and Izabal.

Main project components:

• Component I: Community and entrepreneurial organization
• Component II: Good production practices and production diversification
• Component III: Commercialization support
• Component IV: Knowledge and communication management strategy

The following results are expected by the project’ end, in September 2018:

• Small-scale farmer incomes increase by 15 – 20%.
• Annual sales increase for 6,500 family farms (compared to initial levels).
• 30% of producers in the Río Chixoy basin are successfully selling their products on the local markets in top conditions.