Seeds of alliance and the check is on the way

The Los Angeles Times ran this story by Marla Dickerson about Wal-Mart's relationship with small growers in Latin America. Interest comments relating to how supermarket development in the region is leading to changing realities for Latin American growers, and mostly for the better. Here are a few excerpts from the story:

SAN PEDRO SACATEPEQUEZ, GUATEMALA — Perched on less than an acre of land off an unpaved road in a hardscrabble rural area, farmer Gumercindo Ajanel would hardly seem like a Wal-Mart regular. But in fact, he's working for the American retail giant.

On a recent morning, he proudly displayed fresh-picked cilantro and parsley he ships to the chain's local stores. A company agronomist taught him to grow greens that are hygienic and visually appealing. Best of all, he said, Wal-Mart buys frequently and pays promptly. "That helps a lot," said Ajanel, who employs 30 farmhands in this area about 35 miles northeast of the capital, Guatemala City.

Ajanel, 35, is a rare success story in a nation where nearly three-quarters of the population is rural and largely poor, yet being squeezed by modern economic forces. Supermarkets are rapidly displacing informal channels through which peasants traditionally sold their harvests. Growers used to hawking dusty potatoes out of the back of a truck are finding shoppers defecting to chains whose produce is clean, uniform in size and often lower in price.

Consumers are thrilled at the savings and convenience. But the trend worries some agricultural economists and development experts. Now simply growing a good crop is not enough to ensure the survival of many small-scale farms; they must get their products onto supermarket shelves.

In Guatemala, Wal-Mart this week unveiled a program aimed at linking more mom-and-pop growers to its supply chain. In partnership with the U.S. Agency for International Development and two nonprofit groups, the company plans to train 600 farmers over the next three years to supply produce for its local stores.

It's good public relations for Wal-Mart, but company officials say it also helps the bottom line. Most of the fruits and vegetables the retailer sells in its 457 Central American stores are produced locally. But supply glitches have resulted in temporary shortages of products such as lettuce.