Operating Excellence

(103-3)

Banacol

(CV-1) For soil management and conservation we have established the system of planting natural cover in our cultivars. This helps retain solubility and prevents diseases that might affect plant development, and increase microbiological elements thus reducing the loss of soil due to run off and the use of agrochemicals.

The controls implemented regularly in our crops to guarantee stability and survival, include weed control, integrated pest and plague controls, with an emphasis on black Sigatoka, for our banana plantations. Our challenge is to decrease the chemical load and migrate to organic products to carry out the controls.

(CV-5) Monitoring, and control of agricultural tasks

Monitoring diseases that might affect our banana crops is done on a weekly basis to maintain trends over time. This allows to adapt the decision-making process according to the historical records of four previous weeks.

We have a quality control and auditing team for evaluation, and the team rejects any products that do not meet the clients’ specifications. This is a function carried out in every one of our farms.

(CV-4) Weed control using natural cover and soil improvement

With respect to noble covers, we have soils whose characteristics make it possible to use covers over large areas. This reduces the use of herbicides and, by absorbing humidity, provide natural protection from pests, in a natural way, avoiding the use of agrochemicals.

However, are forms of other types of soil in which the weeds are more aggressive and do not allow the use of noble covers. In those cases, we make use of differentiated agricultural chemicals to promote the development of the cultivar.

To control the Sigatoka, there are areas where we have 2000 mm of rainfall and others where the rainfall is 4000 mm approximately. For the areas with 2000 mm we can work with thirty fumigation cycles (approximately), and for the areas with 4000 mm, the job can be done with forty fumigation cycles. The important thing is to ensure in an efficient manner, and most importantly with a low environmental impact, the quality and satisfaction for our clients using the good practices implemented in our farms.

Nutrition plan in Banacol’s plantations

Our fertilization programs consist of providing all the nutrients required by the crop in order to optimize yields. To do that we have the application of physical mixtures and lime fertilization to meet the requirements defined on the basis of soil and leaf an analysis.

The nutrition plan was implemented In Banacol’s 39 plantations using edaphic fertilization, foliar fertilization, bio stimulation, bio fertilization, and lime fertilization. One of the tools used to design a nutrition plan is soil and foliar analysis. The samples for these analyses were collected in all the plantations in mid-July to be able to make the necessary adjustments before the end of the year and make the nutrition plans for the following year.

To meet the needs of some production areas due to weather conditions, we have irrigation systems in some farms that need it. For that, there are two measurements related to rainfall, evaporation, temperature, and depth of the water table.

These records are used to prepare water balances with humidity additions and losses, and decisions are made to define the drainage or irrigation cycles.

The irrigation system has been shifted from fossil fuels to electrical components to decrease fuel use and be more environmentally friendly.

Biosafety system to protect the crops from Fusarium R4T

Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense tropical strain 4 is an easily propagated fungus in banana and plantain plantations. The fungus causes the cultivar to become sterile for up to 30 years. Its presence in Colombia was reported in June 2019. Banacol took immediate actions aimed at creating awareness and the culture to prevent the fungus from entering the farms.

During 2020, the Fusarium control program focused on preventing the pathogen from entering the country. Therefore, all the Company strategies were focused on that objective.

We replicated the strategy to prevent the disease in 37 out of the 39 plantations by implementing a pilot plan that started in 2019 and is projected to end by January 2021.

In addition, all the Fusarium biosafety protocols designed in 2019 were implemented:

Biosafety policy and protocol for employees and permanent contractors entering the farms.
Protocol for the preparation of the disinfectant mixture, waste use and management.
Protocol for visitors entering and leaving the farms.
Protocols for disease identification and treatment.
Protocol for recording and control of the biometric system.
Protocol for disinfecting vehicles.

Some indicators: (CV-1)

In twenty nineteen there were 375 ha of native cover, and for 2020 that increased to 435 which represents an increase of 60 ha of noble cover.

There was of the percent reduction in the use of agricultural chemicals for weed control.

262 ha were completely prepared for planting (improving the drainage network, change of varieties and density, denser irrigation).

The plan for next year is to reach 1000 ha of noble cover and maintain the 2% decrease in the use of herbicides.

We continue to decrease the area fumigation cycles by using bio stimulants. This has made it possible to decrease the use of agricultural chemicals, and use processes that are cleaner for the environment.

Wakate

Since the beginning, Wakate has been a company committed to sustainability and growth in harmony with natural resources, focused on the sustainable production and commercialization of Hass avocado. The production unit is located in Entre Arroyos, in the municipalities of Neira and Aranzazu, in the Department of Caldas.

Wakate has three lines of business:

Plant production

The Wakate Hass nursery, which is located at KM 41 in the jurisdiction of Manizales, has a production capacity of 600.000 Hass avocado trees per year, for its own supply and for sale to third parties.

Administrative processes were carried out with Instituto Colombiano Agropecuario – ICA for the sale of plant material to third parties. The Nursery complied with the applicable agricultural practices, regulations, technical assistance and traceability management for the plant material.

Fruit production

This is carried out in those farms where there are production units for planting and producing Hass avocados, for which the forecast is 2300 productive ha and over 1,000.000 trees.

Processing and commercialization of fruit and its by-products

This is done in a processing plant where fresh Hass avocado will be packed for its own supply and for sale to third parties. The plan is to set up a circular economy by processing the avocado byproducts. We expect to receive 78.000 tons of our own and third-party fruit.

Wakate sustainable development plan

The plan described below is implemented searching for a responsible value chain, care for and protection of the environment, and the creation of a social footprint by growing wellbeing and sustainable development in the regions where the company operates:

As part of good agricultural practicesaimedatthe sustainability, there are some interesting practices such as:

Weed control.
Bio control agents.
Apiculture and vermiculture.

Control de malezas

There are two classes of weed control:

Pre planting weed control: to set up any crop for production, it is necessary to do wee control, using chemical or mechanical systems or by controlled fires.When the soil has been used for raising cattle, the use of stoloniferous crops (as is typical for feeding cattle), it is necessary to use higher impact controls, such as agricultural chemical or controlled fires, to change the soil cover to noble plants.To that end, weed control using herbicides on the Grass cover that is dominant in those areas. It should be noted that such a control is applied only one time during the life of the plantation and is done to decrease the pressure of the pastures n the avocado and to facilitate the growth of noble covers which have a lower rate of growth than grass and, therefore, cannot thrive in a pasture.

Permanent weed control: This a type of mechanical weed control in strips or streets (weed control on 6 m streets), using scythes to cut the weeds every 8 weeks.

Pests and plague contro

There are many regulations about avocados which determine the type of agricultural chemicals that must be used and the trace amounts by group of other agrochemicals that may be applied or may be found in the avocado fruit; in addition, international certifications also regulate the use of agricultural chemicals to control pests and plagues.

Good agricultural practices: list of inputs approved by ICA for avocados.
Global Gap: is a framework for the developing crops according to good agricultural practices.
Rainforest Alliance: speaks to the maintenance and protection of natural resources. In addition, it regulates the easements that must be maintained when applying cultural chemicals close to forests and water sources (10 m easement)

Bio control agents

We are also implementing best and play control using biological methods, producing and releasing insects, fungi, and nematodes for natural control of the avocado pests.