Earth Alive Clean Technologies Inc., a leading Canadian Clean-Tech company, and the developer and manufacturer of state-of-the-art microbial technology-based products for sustainable agriculture and mining, is pleased to announce that its microbial biofertilizer, Soil Activator™, has obtained final government registration approval in Costa Rica. This is the tenth such approval in Latin America for the Company.

A model of sustainable development for the region and the world, Costa Rica has long been a leader on issues concerning biodiversity and ecological agriculture. In 1998, the country enacted its Biodiversity Law, perhaps the most comprehensive legislation implementing the Convention on Biological Diversity. Agriculture is a significant part of the national economy as can be seen by the diverse primary crops (bananas, pineapples, coffee, sugarcane, rice, and palm oil) harvested on over 300,000 hectares every year.

“Costa Rica is a center of biodiversity and sustainable agriculture,” stated Miguel Monroy, Earth Alive’s Director, Business Affairs. “The country’s Ministry of Agriculture has implemented rigorous regulations for agricultural inputs, and obtaining registration for Soil Activator™ confirms that our product is in line with ecological and sustainability principles while meeting the requirements of a well-developed legal framework.”

Soil Activator™ is distributed in Costa Rica by Brenntag Latin America as part of a exclusive multi-year distribution agreement signed by the two companies in February 2016. Product has arrived in Costa Rica and is already being applied on farms.

Roberto Villalobos, Technical Sales Executive for Químicos Holanda (Brenntag’s office in Costa Rica), stated: “Costa Rica promotes more sustainable and environmentally friendly agricultural production, hence we work extensively with growers of important crops like bananas, pineapples, rice, melons and vegetables to provide them a product that meets multiple objectives – improving their financial bottom line and enhancing their soil health. Soil Activator™ is just such a product, and I am very excited to offer it to our clients.”

Simon Neufeld, Earth Alive’s Chief Agronomist, said: “Soil Activator™ is part of Earth Alive’s SOIL FIRST Technology Platform. The Platform makes soil health the first consideration when designing a productive agricultural system. Our field experience in neighbouring countries has shown that Soil Activator™ provides real benefits to Costa Rica’s principal crops. For example, on-farm research with Soil Activator™ on bananas in Colombia and Dominican Republic provides an excellent foundation for Brenntag’s work in Costa Rica – one of the world’s top banana exporters.”