07-21-2011, 09:30 AM
The fields last year and this were insured, for weather related crop failure & NOT for acts of vandalism, so this would only be an act of attempted insurance fraud by truly out of it farmers, which none of the four are.
Many of my papaya farmer neighbors have been talking about this for the last year, & there is talk at UH Ag Sci on the potential culprits, so the farmer coconut wireless has been very much abuzz on this... and a couple of the nearby organic farms have been involved in anti-GMO protests, so there are active, small kine local protesters... who also may have a desire to remove GMO crops without facing the large penalty....
Both years the farms were hit with very similar styles, and a fairly small very active crew was involved in both, using machete & cutting down new production crop (not before flower, and not older production fields), however, the fact that this year 3 separate farmers were hit on adjacent plantings, but not complete fields (these papaya field boundaries are not very noticeable, even when you are in the fields), makes a personnel issue seem less likely a motive as last years total planting cut-down.
ETA:
These leasehold plots are very interconnected, & some of the organic fields are fairly close... a small (it is estimated 4 persons) group can easily cross the fields on foot, without using the roads, even late (we did so in a fruit fly study a few years ago... and we had field test packs), with just a sharp knife... no probs...
Maybe there needs to be a financial incentive for violence/vandal free produce on this island!
Many of my papaya farmer neighbors have been talking about this for the last year, & there is talk at UH Ag Sci on the potential culprits, so the farmer coconut wireless has been very much abuzz on this... and a couple of the nearby organic farms have been involved in anti-GMO protests, so there are active, small kine local protesters... who also may have a desire to remove GMO crops without facing the large penalty....
Both years the farms were hit with very similar styles, and a fairly small very active crew was involved in both, using machete & cutting down new production crop (not before flower, and not older production fields), however, the fact that this year 3 separate farmers were hit on adjacent plantings, but not complete fields (these papaya field boundaries are not very noticeable, even when you are in the fields), makes a personnel issue seem less likely a motive as last years total planting cut-down.
ETA:
These leasehold plots are very interconnected, & some of the organic fields are fairly close... a small (it is estimated 4 persons) group can easily cross the fields on foot, without using the roads, even late (we did so in a fruit fly study a few years ago... and we had field test packs), with just a sharp knife... no probs...
Maybe there needs to be a financial incentive for violence/vandal free produce on this island!