The Company
Our company was born when one of our founding members, Juan Fernando Letona, noted that there are no rubber plantations in Costa Rica.This was in contrast to his home country of Guatemala, which is the second largest producer of natural rubber in Latin America, and the only country that exports its production.
Experience
Due to Juan´s experience working in agriculture in the Limón area, he determined that the climate and terrain conditions were favorable for natural rubber plantations. Also, as a result of working in diverse areas of agriculture, he noted that Costa Rica´s forestry model based on timber species is not functional for the independent producer, who must work with intermediaries to harvest the wood.
Opportunity
The project is based on 2 premises. First industries in Costa Rica import 100% of their requirements for natural latex, which is what these plantations produce. This raw material is used in the industrial processes of more than 40,000 products. This is also the case throughout Latin America, where industries import more than 1,000,000 MT of natural rubber annually, mainly from South Asia. The other opportunity is that Costa Rica’s “reforestation” model is based on timber varieties that need to be logged to generate income. Through natural rubber, we change this model for one that gives us stable and long-term production, which generates jobs, empowers small producers and creates a link with local industries, all while capturing CO2. Natural rubber as a forest system has some of the highest levels of carbon sequestration.
Research
Since 2014 we have been conducting an investigation and validation process for natural rubber in Costa Rica. We have demonstrated that it is viable, and that it has many features that make it an attractive option. This agroforestry system generates multiple benefits, including stable employment in rural communities, empowerment of small scale producers, replacement of imports by locally sourced materials, reduction of the carbon footprint in several industries, and carbon sequestration by the plantations.”
Our Team
Our founding partner is Juan Fernando Letona Paiz, who has more than 20 years’ experience in the agricultural business, mainly bananas and pineapple, specifically in operations and marketing. The administrative and accounting operations are headed by Jorge Vega Montoya, who has more than 25 years working in the accounting and financial areas of the agricultural sector, and whose primary focus has been in costs accounting. The project´s structure, as well as its financial soundness in all its stages is in the hands of Federico Zamora Cavallini MBA, a professional with ample experience in project formulation and evaluation.
In the field we are supported by a variety of natural rubber experts. Guatemalan consultants visit the project several times a year. We also had the assistance of a natural rubber technician with more than 25 years of experience, who for 9 months worked with us during the establishment of the tree nursery and the clonal garden.