With demand for Mexican cacao expected to increase over the next decade, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has set aside 50 million pesos (US $2.5 million) for small-scale cacao producers in Tabasco, Chiapas, Oaxaca and Guerrero. The money is going to more than 8,000 small growers cultivating 10,950 hectares of land.

Agriculture Minister Víctor Villalobos said the government will also drive the creation of new programs for sanitation, technological development, improving cultivation materials and technical assistance.

At the beginning of the year, cacao growers received 6,200 pesos (US $311) under the program, with the goal of supporting their production, Villalobos said, adding that cacao is a product deeply connected to Mexican history, culture and national identity.

The minister of agriculture in Tabasco said the state will work with federal authorities to make low-interest loans available to cacao producers.

According to the Agri-Food and Fishery Information Service (Siap), the country had 29,500 hectares of land in cacao production in 2020, the majority of it in Tabasco.

Mexico News Daily