Agriculture was the country’s economic base for a long time, but during the first decade of the 21st century the sector had to stand back for strong growth in industry. Coffee and bananas have long been the most important export crops, but banana crops have been replaced in many places by the African palm during the 2000s.
CountryAAH: Comprehensive import regulations of Honduras. Covers import prohibitions and special documentation requirements for a list of prohibited items.
Palm oil production doubled in five years from 2008, and in 2012, palm oil exports were slightly larger than banana exports.
The coffee is grown at the border with Guatemala and Nicaragua. The coffee sector, which is dominated by small growers, was hit hard by Hurricane Mitch and record low world market prices in 2001. Since then, the sector has recovered and accounted for a third of export revenue in 2012. Honduras was the world’s sixth largest coffee producer in 2012. For Honduras defense and foreign policy, please check themotorcyclers.
Bananas are grown on large plantations on the north coast, where the soil is fertile and the climate among the best in the world for banana production. The sector is dominated by subsidiaries of American giants Chiquita and Dole, although in recent years they have received competition from multinational Fyffes based in Ireland. As many as 70 percent of the banana plantations were destroyed by Hurricane Mitch. Cultivations were restored and reached the same production levels as before the hurricane seven years later, but as more and more producers invested in palm oil instead, the levels again decreased.
The investment in palm oil was part of a broadening of agricultural exports following Hurricane Mitch. Exports of melon, pineapple and mango have also increased since 2000.
The country’s more rugged soils are used by small farmers who grow maize, rice, sugar cane and beans, especially for their own use. The earth is unevenly distributed. More than 300,000 small farmers lack their own land.
In the fishery, shrimp, which are grown in the Choluteca province in the south, dominate. Shrimp, like lobster, has become an important export product.
FACTS – AGRICULTURE
Agriculture’s share of GDP
11.8 percent (2018)
Percentage of land used for agriculture
28.9 percent (2016)
Abbreviationfinder.org: Offers how the 3-letter acronym of HND stands for the state of Honduras in geography.
2020
June
The president coronas infected
17th of June
President Juan Orlando Hernández is taken to hospital, the day after he told him he and his wife both tested positive for covid-19. The doctors have recommended rest, but Hernández says he plans to continue working remotely. He urges Hondurans to continue following the advice on social distancing, despite the fact that the economy started to open the week before after almost three months of closure.
April
Ex-police chief suspected of drug trafficking in the United States
April 30th
Former National Police Chief Juan Carlos Bonilla Valladares is indicted in the United States for involvement in the smuggling of tons of cocaine for which President Juan Orlando Hernández and his brother are charged. It is unclear where Bonilla, who was Police Chief 2012-2013, is located. He is the latest of several state executives accused of involvement in the lucrative drug trade. President Hernández has been appointed but not prosecuted for crimes in the United States, while his brother Tony Hernández has been sentenced but has not yet received his sentence (see October 2019).
March
Protest against quarantine rules
24th of March
Hundreds of people are demonstrating and demanding that the government provide them with food since orders have been issued for a “complete curfew”. The protesters are equipped with stones and skiffs, and block off a usually well-traveled road in Tegucigalpa.
Closures due to corona pandemic
March 15th
The government is ordering a week-long shutdown of social functions to try to stop the spread of the new coronavirus causing major disruption worldwide. Teaching, public transport and worship are activities that are put on ice. So far, relatively few cases of corona infection have been detected in Latin America, but there is a risk that the spread will increase sharply.
