Prior to 1940, agriculture was the basis of
Puerto Rican economy. At the time, sugar cane production was the main agricultural
activity and coffee production a near second. Puerto Rican coffee is rated
among the best in the world.
The top 10 agricultural products in fiscal 2004-2005 (July 1 to June 30), in
order of importance, were the following:
1. Dairy
2. Poultry
3. Plantains
4. Ornamental Plants
5. Coffee
6. Beef & Veal
7. Bananas
8. Pork
9. Fighting Cocks
10. Seeds & Seedlings
Source: Puerto Rico Department of Agriculture
Production is not sufficient to meet high
local demands for any of the main agricultural products. Consequently, much
importation is made from neighboring Caribbean islands, Central America,
the United States of America and the rest of the world. There is legislation
to control the importation of sugar, coffee and other major agricultural
products.
Local plantain farmers, particularly in the western and southwestern sections of Puerto Rico, have seen their harvests affected in 2005 and 2006 due to plant diseases that affect the plantain leaf and reduce the plantain crop size and weight. The Puerto Rico Department of Agriculture is providing support to farmers in order to control damage to their crops.
Government activities related to agriculture
are handled through the Puerto Rico Department of Agriculture (Departamento
de Agricultura), telephone (787) 721-2120, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM AT.
Other sections of this website include Tropical Recipes,
section devoted to recipes based chiefly on Puerto Rican cooking. Many of
the recipes are based on ingredients grown or produced locally. The same holds
true for two other sections, Tropical Drinks
, which includes recipes for drinks with alcohol and Tropical Refreshers
, refreshments without alcohol.
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