Sustainability

Water Quantity

We strive to use water efficiently. Various operational practices are implemented to conserve and reduce the use of water. Our melon farms utilize plastic mulch and drip irrigation methods which significantly reducing water demand. Where appropriate and safe for food production, some of our production sites have initiated water recycling and reuse projects. These projects include among others, rainwater harvesting for use in facility sanitation, irrigation and other farming activities.

Rainwater Harvesting At banana farms in the Philippines, rain water is collected and used in various farm operations. Some of the collected rain water, for example, is used for showers for employees handling plant protection products. Collected rainwater in this Philippine operation is estimated at 296,000 cu.m. per year..

A rain water harvesting pilot project has been established in Carmen, Costa Rica. The collected rain water is recycled and used for banana spraying operations.

Recycling Water Our fresh cut operation in Dubai performs in-house water recycling using a multimedia filtration unit and an ultra filtration unit. The treated recycled water is used in operations for garden irrigation and flushing.

Hydrometers to Monitor Water Usage Water meters are installed along the main water pipe lines at banana and pineapple farms in Brazil to monitor and quantify water use during irrigation. By using rainfall and evaporation data, monitoring the water content in soil and determining the plant water requirement, we are able to use water more efficiently for irrigation purposes.

Drip Irrigation Drip irrigation systems are being implemented in melon farms in Brazil, Costa Rica, Arizona and Guatemala. In Chile, ninety percent of the farms use this method.

Use of Plastic Mulch Plastic mulch in melon operations in Kenya, Guatemala, Brazil and Arizona minimizes evaporation by trapping moisture in the soil.