Organic Pineapple Working Group

[Organic Pineapple Working Group <opwg AT lists.ibiblio.org>]

In my reply to Det and Anurat I  wrote that I was not aware of any literature on the subject of organic pineapple. However, that isn't correct as anyone who attended the pineapple symposium in Brazil might remember. Two papers were presented there that might be helpful. I helped to edit the Murray paper but have not read the other one. See abstracts below and copies of the original may be obtainable from the authors and are available for a fee from ISHS.org.

Also, once Rob has finished the summary of best practices, if he is willing, I would be willing to include it in Pineapple News. That way it could be available to all who have computer access from the ISHS web site. If Rob is willing to make the copy public, the document could be updated as new knowledge becomes available.
Best regards
Duane

Akali S., Jha K.K., Amod S. (2009) Cultivation of pineapple for upliftment of rural economy in Nagaland, India. Acta Horticulturae 822:99-106. Nagaland, the 16th state of India and situated in the Northeastern part of the country, is known for its potential to grow a wide range of horticultural crops. Pineapples are one of the main crops supported by the government for commercialization in this state. Pineapple cultivation has the potential to improve the livelihood of the rural people in the state. In Nagaland, pineapples have been grown traditionally, however randomly and with low yields and scattered production. Pineapple fruit grown in the state is of excellent quality in terms of size, appearance, TSS and other aspects. The soil and climatic conditions are well suited for its cultivation. In addition to this, pineapple has been cultivated organically by default. This has provided a great opportunity for a more organized organic pineapple cultivation, focusing on the global market. Progress has been made in the cultivation and commercialization of pineapples in the state and many rural people have shifted from paddy cultivation, an age-old practice, to pineapple production and thereby improving their livelihood to a great extent. This has led to many districts of Nagaland having taken up pineapple cultivation on a commercial scale. With the large-scale production of pineapple, the establishment of a processing unit has become viable and the state has opened opportunities to become a global player in the organic pineapple trade. A case study on success stories will be presented in this work, illustrating the potential of pineapples to contribute to the economic upliftment of the rural poor and improving their livelihood.

Murray D.N.A., Manicom B. (2009) Development of an organic pineapple cultivation strategy for the Eastern Cape Region of South Africa. Acta Horticulturae 822:107-116. Globally, fresh and processed pineapple is readily available. The exotic status of pineapple is gone and suppliers focus on differentiating their product to maintain a competitive edge in the market place, such as with Del Monte's MD-2 hybrid. A lucrative niche market has emerged for organic pineapple at national and international levels. There even exists a sustained demand for processed organic pineapple. The Pineapple Growers Association, Eastern Cape, RSA, requested the development of a certified organic pineapple production strategy that could be widely embraced by commercial producers. A producer friendly strategy, limiting the number of operations and utilising off-the-shelf certified inputs would be ideal. An observational trial to explore various approaches was initiated, commencing with a two year conditioning period to maximise soil aeration and drainage, manipulate soil mineral levels and balances toward the optimum and to stimulate the inherent soil biology levels. The natural plant crop harvest occurred in 2005/6 with organic fruit yields ranging between 71 and 104 t ha-1 whilst standard inorganic production was 73 t ha-1. The plant crop fruit cycle coincided with an extremely wet 2005 winter, resulting in high levels of plant root mortality. The ratoon harvest was in 2007/8 and organic fruit yields were 31-55 t ha-1 while standard practice production was 47 t ha-1.

-- 
Duane P. Bartholomew, Ph.D., Agronomist emeritus
Dept. of Tropical Plant and Soil Science, University of Hawaii at Manoa
1910 East-West Road, Honolulu, HI 96822
Pineapple News on the web at http://www.ishs-horticulture.org/workinggroups/pineapple/.