About Us

The Belize Citrus Industry
The citrus industry is the most significant agro-industry in Belize. It earned more than US$50.6 million for the country in the 2003/2004 crop year. Although Belize's production is tiny compared to the citrus giants (Brazil and US), Belize' production per capita is $US181 / head, the highest of any country and hence a high national dependency on the crop.

The Stann Creek Valley is the traditional heart of the Belizean citrus industry (where grapefruit trees were planted in 1926) with over 75% of farmers (approximately 750 growers) in the area being involved in the cultivation of the crop, the majority of those managing below 10 acres. Citrus production in Belize has now expanded into the other Districts of Belize and can now be seen in the west of the country in the Cayo District and in the southern most part of the country in the Toledo District. Approximately 48,000 acres of citrus are cultivated in Belize, Valencia orange (80%) and grapefruit (20%) being the principal crops, with small amounts of early oranges, limes, tangerines and lemons, which are processed into Frozen Orange Juice Concentrate (FCOJ) by the two factories. The industry supports the livelihoods of approximately 1,000 farm families (there are 1,000 registered growers) and approximately 10,000 citrus industry workers. The largest 65 growers (above 100 acres) are responsible for 75% of the production. There is a growing interest is the export of fresh fruit from Belize, small quantities are being exported to the UK and Germany.

In October 2002 the Citrus Growers Association acquired majority ownership of the two processing factories, jointly known as Citrus Products of Belize Limited. This means that that all aspects of citrus production in Belize, from the tree planting to fruit processing to product selling are now grower owned and managed.

The Citrus Growers Association
All citrus growers in Belize provide core funding for and are members of the Citrus Growers Association (CGA), a non governmental, non-profit organization -charged with representing the interests of the citrus industry in Belize. The Association provides cost price services, administers preferential loan schemes and conducts research and extension programmes for growers.

The Citrus Growers Association's direction and policy is set by the Committee of Management, a group of nine growers, elected by the grower members at Annual General Meetings. Operational management is the responsibility of the Chief Executive Officer who reports to the Committee of Management. CGA is funded from a cess (tax) paid by grower members on each box of fruit delivered to the factory for processing.

Membership
There are two categories of membership:

1. Full members
Provisional members

1. Any person who satisfies the Committee that he/she has not less than three acres of citrus trees and has produced not less than three hundred boxes of citrus in the year of operation preceding his application shall be entitled to become a full member of the Association on application to the Committee and on payment of the prescribed fee and on furnishing such information relating to his/her citrus trees as may be required by the Committee.



2. Every other person who satisfies the Committee that he has at least one acre of citrus trees to come into bearing shall be entitled to become a provisional member of the Association on application and on payment of the prescribed fee. Provisional members may attend meetings of the Association and participate in discussions thereat, but may not vote and shall not be eligible to hold office in the Association.

Fees
A one-time five dollar fee is charged for membership. The annual growers license required for shipping the fruit to the factory is issued free of cost.

Organization
Structurally the Association is divided into the (i) administration, sales and financial and (ii) the research and extension division. The former is responsible for providing low interest loans for grove investment, cost price machinery hireage and haulage services, fuel, and agrochemicals to its members and for negotiating with the processors fair fruit prices. The Citrus Research & Education Institute is the division responsible for conducting research to develop improved grove management practices and all technical assistance with these practices, including on-farm demonstrations. CREI is recognized by the Ministry of Education as a tertiary level institution.

The Citrus Research & Education Institute (CREI)

Mission Statement:
The mission of CREI is to work with citrus industry stakeholders to develop, implement and share technology that will lead to the establishment in Belize of production and sustainable citrus farming systems.

Research into improving citrus production has been ongoing at the CREI site since 1962 when a station for the Citrus Research Unit of the University of West Indies was established. From 1967 citrus research and education in Belize have been the responsibility of the Research Unit of the Citrus Growers Association. In 1992 the Unit was renamed the Citrus Research & Education Institute and is internationally recognized for its pioneering work in tropical citrus research.

The fundamental philosophy underpinning all of CREI's work is that the starting point for any technology development is the knowledge and experience of the citrus grower. It is through the sharing of this experience and knowledge, CREI staff believe, that significant improvements in grove productivity can be achieved. CREI's role in this process is to facilitate the sharing of information, working with growers to compare, contrast and document grove management techniques, techniques that grower experiences have shown really work under Belize conditions. CREI maintains good contacts with the 'wider citrus world', particularly in Central America, the Caribbean and Florida; keeping up to date with the latest international developments in technology and understanding. Knowledge of these advances complements the development of local grove management practices.