Foreign investment to the rescue of the Habanero pepper industry in Yucatan

At the moment the production of the Habanero is still depleted by last year’s floods and the Covid pandemic. 

MÉRIDA, Yucatán, (October 05, 2021).- Marketers from Europe and the United States are willing to invest in the Yucatecan countryside, especially in the production of habanero pepper, said Freddy Ríos Urcelay, president of the State Council of Producers of Chile Habanero de Yucatán.

“At this time we can say that we are very advanced in these negotiations, we are going to pay for the product with annual rates of 6%, with a four-year grace period to recover, but I think that one year is enough for this sector,” he explained. 

Production reduced by pandemic

He explained that at the moment the production of the Yucatecan Habanero Pepper is still diminished by the floods of last year and the Covid pandemic, so the solution they see as most feasible to improve the production of chili is found in foreign investors through the injection of resources that could help producers rescue their plantations by assuring the purchase of the whole production. 

“The problem with these schemes is that we are not used to producing with the high quality required abroad, but we have to achieve it,” he said. 

Ríos Urcelay announced that they are in talks with an investor from the United States, and they require around 4 thousand hectares to meet the demands of their market, so it is expected to negotiate with local producers to enter into agreements. 

Source: Sipse