150 families in Costa Rica live off of butterfly farming. They export $100,000 worth of pupae weekly to other countries. They have faced problems with the export procedure being too long, about 30 days, while the pupae have a duration of just 15 days. There was a temporary stop to their activity but it is now resumed.
A long term solution is still needed but they are able to resume export. Entrepreneurs and Minae are meeting to seek a permanent solution. The short term quick fix was an adjustment to requirements to obtain permits, an agreement reached at the end of last week that will be valid for two months, following the denouncing of losses due to new requirements. Additionally, Sinac temporarily added more staff for permit approval to make the turnover time quicker, between 8-10 days.
In the long run, more requirements are needed in order to not harm wildlife. 30,000 pupae from Costa Rica are distributed weekly to countries such as the United States, Canada, Holland, and Dubai.
