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Teeccino's Rainforest Projects
Rainforest Vanilla From Mexico
Vanilla, the only member of the orchid family used as a food, is native to
Southern Mexico where the Spanish conquistadors discovered the Aztec emperor,
Montezuma, drinking "Cacahuatl", a beverage made from cacoa, honey and vanilla
which inspired the development of chocolate. The flavor of Mexican vanilla is
reputed to be the best in the world but since very little has been available for
export, Bourbon vanilla from Madagascar is now more commonly used. In modern
Mexico, vanilla reproduction by independent growers dropped when large
plantation style cultivation was introduced by American cola and spice
companies. Indigenous growers were discouraged from growing vanilla because the
buying and curing of the green vanilla beans (a process that takes six months)
has been controlled by a Mafia-like group that dominates the small growers.
Vanilla cultivation is a cash crop compatible with the rainforest which can
be grown in primary forest or in second growth forest which is now regenerating.
The villages involved in vanilla cultivation include Chinantescos Indians from
Oaxaca, Zoque-Popoluca and Nahaut Indians from Southern Veracruz and Totonacos
Indians and Mestizos from Papantla, Veracruz. In Papantla, a cooperative was
formed and money was raised to build a facility where vanilla could be cured.
This facility has been used to educate representatives from other communities
that want to build their own curing facilities.
Organic methods of agriculture are being employed with the vanilla
cultivation. Vanilla vines are supported by nitrogen fixing shade trees of the
legume family. Thick mulch is put on the vanilla roots to protect them and the
soil from dehydration. Because of the importance of shade trees to reconnect the
forest canopy in deforested areas, vanilla is an important crop for
agro-forestry plans.
Caroline has worked with vanilla cooperatives to assist them in successfully
developing export sales for their vanilla to extract manufacturers in the USA.
This is the first time in many decades that the indigenous people have been
empowered to control the price and destiny of their own vanilla harvest.
The benefits of vanilla cultivation in Mexico include:
- Vanilla cultivation helps preserve the rainforest and its biodiversity by
allowing second growth forest to regenerate. The shade trees growing over
vanilla serve to reconnect the forest canopy. Primary forest can also become
economically productive as vanilla vines are planted on existing trees.
- Vanilla provides a much needed cash crop to native people living in
subsistence economic conditions at the edge of the rainforest. Further
deforestation is prevented as alternative sources for income crops is provided.
- Vanilla cultivation is an agent for beneficial social change because it
provides cooperative opportunities for individuals and for different communities
to work together towards a common goal. It also offers valuable work for women
and children who are otherwise limited in their ability to earn money.
Rainforest Honey From Mexico
The Calakmul Biosphere Reserve on the Yucatan Peninsula is rated the fourth most
biodiverse area in the world. It is home to more than 10 species of mammals in
danger of extinction including the jaguar, tapir, white-tailed and brocket deer,
the harpy eagle, ocellated turkey and great currassow. Five out of six species
of Mexican cats live in the reserve along with howler and spider monkeys,
anteaters, and white-lipped peccaries. The reserve is an important wintering
site for over 60 species of migratory birds from the United States and Canada.
It is also home to Mayan Indians who still live in traditional villages in areas
surrounding the Reserve.
The Mayans are working with ecologists and agronomists to develop livelihoods
from forest products which are compatible with rainforest preservations efforts.
Beekeeping which is non-invasive to the forest and takes advantage of the great
variety of wild flowering trees is one of the primary ways to give economic
value to the forest. Tall canopy trees, subjected to illegal lumbering, become
protected as sources for nectar for the honey bees.
Teeccino works with a cooperative of Mayan beekeepers to develop sales for their
honey to North American manufacturers. Purchase of this honey directly supports
the families of the Mayan beekeepers, allowing them to export their honey
through their own cooperative without any loss of profits to an intermediary.
Formerly, the Mayans were victims of whatever price was being offered by the
"Coyotes" or local buyers who come to the villages on behalf of Mexican
exporters. The Mayan Coop with the administrative help of a local NGO
(non-governmental organization) was organized to give the beekeepers their first
opportunity to become their own exporters and to benefit from the world market
price of their honey.
If you would like more information on Mexican Vanilla or
Mexican Honey, please call Teeccino at (800) 498-3434.
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