FAO/GIEWS - Foodcrops & Shortages 09/01 - GUATEMALA (3 September)
Rains in June were 60 percent lower than normal and some 8 percent of the area planted to maize and beans in the central and eastern departments of the country was lost. About 13 000 subsistence farms reportedly suffered at least 80 percent losses of first season crops in localized areas. Aggregate cereal production in 2001 is forecast to decrease by 9 percent from last year’s average crop. The government has declared a state of emergency in the affected departments and the international community is providing food assistance to the affected population with local purchases. Although food prices have shown signs of stabilization with the arrival of first season crops on the market, an increase in the demand for maize and beans from neighbouring El Salvador and Costa Rica could result in price increases before the end of the year.