AGRICULTURE

In my family there has been a long tradition of cultivating bananas. In 1980, when my father died, I took over the helm of a medium-sized banana plantation or “finca” called Las Damas, in the West-coast of Tenerife. I had to deal with irrigation plans, nutrient balances, packing processes, labour issues and other aspects of an agriculture business. My input was mainly technical and supervision as a part-time dedication, allowing me to keep my other commitments as professional biologist.

At present, the finca is a family corporation called Agricola Tauce S.A. I am the President, my brother Mario takes care of finances, and my daughter Laura runs the cultivation. Initially we packed and exported our own fruit, but now we are part  of Europlatano, a cooperative which takes care of commercialisation.

I miss walking under the shade of the banana leaves avoiding the pitchforks and spider webs; looking for suspicious scratches on the skin of the fruit, jumping away when the sprinklers start, and the smell of the wet earth and the other fruits that grow as secondary production: mangos, avocados, guavas…  Yes, I miss that smell. Such happens to a President who has to look at paperwork and has too many irons in the fire.

The man with the red shirt is Darío, our diligent sharecropper.