Abstract
Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and presents a unique scenario for the food and agriculture industry, because there is no food safety legislation. The application of Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) leads to improvements of quality, safety and sustainability of agricultural products. The purpose of the study was to assess the status of Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) in cocoa and coffee farms in Northern Haiti. A general survey captured information about the farmer and the farm, and an audit checklist was used to assess compliance to GAPs. A total of 11 farms (n = 11) were audited, of which 7 were cocoa farms (64%) and 4 were coffee farms (34%) in the regions of Dondon, Limonade and Milot. Average overall audit scores for coffee farms (73%) were higher than for cocoa farms (55%). Farms affiliated with a cooperative scored higher (78%) than those that were not part of a cooperative (55%). The sections of the survey on “Practices related to premises and production site”, and the “use of agricultural inputs and chemicals” received the lowest scores but were confined to the cocoa farms. “Record keeping” plus “distribution, transportation, and traceability” were cause for concern with both the cocoa and coffee farms. Critical non-conformances included the access of livestock animals and domestic pets to processing and storage areas, the lack of control in the application of agricultural chemicals, a lack of safeguards on equipment and elevated surfaces, and washing of fresh cocoa beans to remove the mucilage with water that had not been treated or tested for potability. The root cause of the non-conformances, regardless of the commodity, was either related to poor physical and organizational infrastructures, or to a lack of technical training.
Highlights
Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere
The purpose of the study was to assess the status of Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) in cocoa and coffee farms in Northern Haiti, and to identify the most common practices that would compromise the food safety and quality of Haitian cocoa and coffee beans
A letter was sent to the Haiti Food Hub (HFH) agronomist inviting interested parties from the 70 cocoa farmers and 70 coffee producers affiliated with the HFH to participate in this study
Summary
Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere. It ranked 163 out of 188 countries in the Human Development Index (HDI) for 2016 based on life expectancy, health, knowledge, education and living standards [1]. Many people are living below the poverty line with less than $2 US per day [2]; half of the population is undernourished [3]; 40% of people aged 15 or older are illiterate [1]; less than 40% of the population has access to electricity [4] and 70% do not have access to potable water sources [5] These factors have hindered Haiti’s development and have forced it to rely on international assistance [6] [7], with over 20% of the government’s budget coming from external assistance alone [6]. Other significant agricultural-based exports included essential oils ($29.6 M, 2.8%), tropical fruits ($9.42 M, 0.91%), and alcoholic beverages ($4.35 M, 0.44%) [8]
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