Each year Presbyterian congregations celebrate Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week, by raising p

1
Each year Presbyterian congregations celebrate
Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week, by
raising palm branches in jubilant celebration.
2
Yet for the communities who harvest these plants
year after year, palm fronds rarely represent
that same jubilation.
3
In the palm-producing areas of Guatemala
and Mexico, the harvest begins with xaterros
(sha-tare-rows), palm harvesters.
These hard-toiling laborers typically earn their
living from middlemen who pay them based on the
volume of palms they harvest.
4
To increase yield, xaterros generally employ
harsh harvesting techniques which remove much of
the palm and expose the forest floor below.
Not only does this put palms at risk for speci
es depletion, but it endangers the entire forest
many palm producing areas are important
biosphere reserves.
5
Over-harvesting palms also threatens the
livelihood of these communities. The poorest
segments of the rural population rely on palm
harvesting for income. Although U.S. palm purcha
ses may reach 4.5 million each year, the
xaterros themselves earn very little.
Photo courtesy of Dean Current
6
Some harvesting communities have organized
cooperatives that work to develop a new structure
for harvesting palms. Called Eco-Palms, they ar
e harvested in a sustainable manner that protects
the environment, the communities, and provides a
fair income for palm harvesters.
7
When harvesting Eco-Palms, xaterros are paid by
quality rather than the quantity.
Ultimately this helps limit the amount of palms
harvested from the forest.
8
Xaterros must trek several miles into the forest
for the harvest. After they carefully select
their palms, they make the long journey back to
their communities. These xaterros from Sierra
Morena in Mexico rest briefly before returning
home.
9
The xaterros then bring their palms to the
cooperative to be sorted and packaged.
Cooperative members do this instead of selling t
heir palms to middlemen so that more money stays
in their communities.
10
Sorters meticulously examine the palms for size,
color, blemishes and uniformity in the distance
between the leaves on each frond.
Only then are the palms approved for packaging.
11
Program coordinator Anna Sentana provides
feedback to xaterros in the Carmelita community
of Guatemala. Since the Eco-Palm communities co
mmit themselves to learning new methods to reduce
their impact on the natural forest and harvest
quality palms, xaterros increase their effective
yield.
12
In the Guatemalan Oaxactun community, sorters use
marks on the table to place the palm into 18,
21, and 24 length piles. This work empowers
women in the cooperatives by providing jobs,
increased income and leadership positions.
13
As they work, sorters discard poor quality palms
at their feet. Conventional harvesting techniq
ues produce up to 50 waste, but Eco-Palm
harvests only waste 5-7 of material due to the
xaterros selective harvesting.
14
Once sorters finish, the palms are ready for
packaging. Members bundle the palms in groups o
f 20, then roll 30 bundles into a packet for easy
storage and shipping.
15
Cooperative members load the packets into trucks
and transport them to an air-conditioned storage
facility. The cool air keeps the palms fresh u
ntil delivery.
16
After the packaged palms leave Guatemala or
Mexico, they are imported into the U.S. by
Continental Greens. A 5 social premium is add
ed to the cost of each palmmoney that returns to
the harvesting communities.
17
This cooperative in Oaxactun looks toward a
healthy future. They plan to use the additional
income from Eco-Palms to replace the hot metal
roof of their processing building, thus improving
conditions for the palms and, most importantly,
cooperative members working inside.
18
That same cooperative saves for first aid kits
with anti-venom to treat the snake bites common
to xaterros.
19
When cooperatives can process their own palms,
they are able to provide better living conditions
for their communities. Carmelita cooperative
employees receive life, accident, and health
insurance.
20
In addition to helping their members, the
Carmelita cooperative is committed to helping
their community they provided funds for this
new school building.
21
Celebrate justice along with jubilance this Pa
lm Sunday. To learn more about how your church
can be involved with Eco-Palms visit www.pcu
sa.org/palms