SUGARCANE

To Riopaila Agrícola strategic guidance is the guide that allows us to act daily to improve our work and make our fields a highly productive source, generating natural agricultural products that satisfy the industrial market through sustainable development, all this within a framework of processes of continuous quality improvement, innovation, value generation, competitiveness, agricultural sustainability and social and environmental responsibility.

In Riopaila Agrícola we are cultivators of 5.237 acres in our own lands destined to the commercial production of sugarcane; in turn, we have clearly identified some percentage areas of varietal material for high-quality seed production, which promotes the further development of the crop until it is harvested. Our seedbeds are managed with agronomic concepts and a technological package structured in: Management Plant nutrition, application of composted fertilizers, timely lifting and biological controls that guarantee a plant material free of pests and suitable for vegetative propagation. Our approach to varietal propagation is based on the multiplication of varieties that have been adapted very well to the various agro-ecological conditions of the areas where we place our seedlings. We produce material in sufficient quantity to meet the internal needs as well as external customers who require plant material at the appropriate time with the varieties recommended for each agro-ecological zone.

We are located in the departments of Valle del Cauca and Cauca, making main presence in municipalities such as: Zarzal, Bugalagrande y Roldanillo; which the edapho-climatic and biochemical conditions make this dispersion of areas ideal for the establishment of our technological package by agro-ecological zone.

Mango

With the firm purpose of meeting the goals and objectives outlined by the directors of the company Riopaila Agrícola S.A., in the strategic direction plan, and visualizing a new alternative to diversify its agricultural production towards alternative fruit and vegetable crops, 15 acres of mango, equivalent to approximately 3,500 mango trees of the Kent, Atahulfo and Keit varieties, were cultivated on Riopaila Agrícola S.A. land, starting around the years 2014 and 2015.

The varieties that are currently cultivated come from Mexican seeds in the case of the Atahulfo mango variety, for the Kent mango variety, the seed comes from North America, and finally the Keit mango variety comes from South Florida (USA).

LIVESTOCK

Taking advantage of the potential areas of agricultural crops, and contributing to the consumption of local meat, Riopaila’s Agrícola Society has a Cattle raising in the rearing stages, Lifting and fattening stages, of the Commercial Cebu and White Brahman breeds, Of which 55% of the herd feed in zones of passageways between the sugarcane fields and 45% in pastures.

History

With an exceptional vision, in 1920 Mr. Hernando Caicedo established the first dairy farm of the Holstein-Friesian breed in Riopaila, located in El Valle del Cauca, during the years 1923 to 1944, Mr. Hernando Caicedo made a series of imports of the best Holstein stallions from the most recognized livestock farms in Holland, The United States and Canada, in 1935 with Mr. Jorge Molina founded the Holstein Association of El Valle del Cauca and in 1955 the Livestock reaches its highest development with 1717 head of Holstein cattle and 8500 head of high crossbred Zebu cattle., In that year Angus breeding stock were imported and two years later, purebred Zebu breeding stock was imported from Florida United States. In 1963 the Charolais breed was introduced to cross it with the Cebu and form the Charbray in order to produce better quality meat. In 1973 the cattle ranch became the property of Agrícola Montecitos.

Currently, associating the SugarCane and Livestock Production Systems, there are 1500 cattle feeding in sugarcane passageways, giving use to these areas and optimizing the cost of production. The base of the breeding is in Riopaila Agrícola and the fattening of the males is done in Castilla Agrícola.