The invasions of the banana plantations of La Esperanza, La Paz and Guanacaste last November left extensive damage to banana plantations. It has led to the temporary closure of these farms, leading to the suspension of jobs for some 500 temporary workers and a 50% reduction in fruit exports.

The banana company will stop exporting a thousand containers of bananas, and 25 million lempiras in salaries will not circulate during this time of suspension of production, which will be for several months.

The fruit was damaged during the takeover, which lasted six weeks, causing millions of dollars in losses to the Santa Inés agricultural company, owner of the plantations in Isletas, Sonaguera, Colón.

Alirio Garay, president of the Sindicato de Isletas (Sitraeasisa), said there is concern about the layoffs. Still, they hope the farms can be restored in a few months to rehire staff. 

"The government must intervene so that there are no more invasions and guarantee employment; here we are in uncertainty; we want them to let us work in peace," Garay said.

He said there is no fruit to process and be sent to the United States. Garay also assured that the companies would not close operations, but profits would be reduced since they would not reach what was scheduled for export. This year, the banana leader called on the Government to prevent land invasions, which affect the country's economy.

The banana plantations of Isletas are two thousand hectares, and about a thousand hectares are damaged in the three farms. The invasion caused losses of around 5 million lempiras per day to the Santa Inés company since they were prevented from taking out the bananas usually exported to the United States. Also, due to the lack of maintenance, the advance of diseases that damage farms, such as Sigatoka, among others, is enormous.