Planted area with pineapples in Costa Rica has doubled in the last four years, rising from 22,400ha in 2006 to 45,000ha last year, according to figures from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Agriculture Sector Planning Department (Sepsa).
During the same period, the value of Costa Rican pineapple exports has risen by 55 per cent from US$430m to US$666m, according to Procomer data and reported by local publication La Nación.
Volume-wise, production has also reportedly increased from 1.36m tonnes in 2006 to 1.98m tonnes in 2010.
The bulk of production is located in the northern and Caribbean regions of the Central American country, which combined account for 82 per cent of national planted area.
The continued growth of the industry comes despite ongoing local and international concerns regarding alleged labour and environmental problems within the industry.
The majority of Costa Rica’s pineapple crop is exported overseas, with 1.66m tonnes shipped last year, according to Procomer.
Some 45 per cent of the volume was sent to the US, 17 per cent to Belgium, 10 per cent to the Netherlands and 9 per cent to Italy.
