Farms and plantations

Historically, agriculture is an important pillar of the economy of Costa Rica, and although other sectors such as industry, tourism and software development have become increasingly important, every seventh “tico” still operates in the agricultural sector. The main traditional products are coffee and bananas, but also cocoa, sugar cane and pineapple are cultivated. The three most important export products are banana, pineapple and coffee.

In the liberal phase of the 19th century, coffee production boosted the economy and the republic became the richest country in the region. The so-called "golden bean" was shipped across the Pacific to Europe and brought social and economic recovery in Costa Rica. The government distributed planting plants to the farmers free of charge, and the cultivation area, which had previously been restricted to the Central Valley, expanded. Today, there exist eight different regions according to climatic conditions, altitude and soil characteristics:

- Central Valley (at the foot of the volcanoes Irazú, Poás and Barva)

- West (cantons of San Ramón, Palmares, Naranjo, Grecia, Valverde Vega and Atenas)

- Guanacaste region (cantons of Hojancha, Nicoya, Santa Cruz and Nandayure in Guanacaste province, Monteverde and Montes de Oro in Puntarenas)

- three zones in the province of Cartago: Tres Ríos, the Turrialba and Orosi valleys

- Brunca region (Coto Brus and Pérez Zeledón)

- Santos region (Tarrazú, Dota, León Cortés, Acosta, Aserrí, Desamparados and Corralillo de Cartago)

In these regions, several plantations offer guided tours. There, enjoying a delicious cup of coffee, you can find interesting facts about the production of the beverage, from the cultivation to the completion of the product.

The construction of a new railway line linking the cultivation areas of the coffee to the Atlantic brought the banana production to an experimental stage. Bananas were planted along the new rails, which became a sales dispute in the USA. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the banana became the number one export item in Costa Rica. Nowadays, Costa Rica is one of the five nations that produce about 70% of banana exports. A visit to banana plantations is possible in the province of Limón and Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí.

In the eighties of the last century, Costa Rica began exporting pineapples. However, the fruit does not become an important product for foreign trade until 1995. Nowadays it is one of the three most important export goods in the country. In Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí there is a farm that offers organic pineapples.