Chiquita's recently announced partnership with food retail group Rewe to protect biodiversity in Panama's Bocas Del Toro province is progressing well, according to those overseeing the project.
Earlier this year, the companies purchased around 130ha of land in a Unesco-protected wetland area of the San San Pond Sak region, close to the multinational's banana plantations, as part of the Rewe-Chiquita Biodiversity Project.
During the second week of November, for every kilo of Chiquita bananas sold at Rewe's 3,500 German stores, €0.10 was given to the development project, which includes an environmental education programme for adults and children that will see more than 24,000 plants introduced to the area.
The project is expected to contribute to the economic revival of the Panamanian province.
A website, located at www.tropenprojekt-panama.de, is providing information and updates about the progress being made.
'The partnership with Rewe offers us the opportunity to contribute to the protection of biodiversity in the region of Bocas, at the same time promoting the wellbeing of the local communities,' said Michel Loeb, president of Chiquita Europe and Middle East.
'This project, realised in collaboration with Rewe and the Panamanian authorities, constitutes a further example of our long-term commitment to the field of corporate social responsibility,' he added.
