Daily coverage from across the country, written for the expat community
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Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar is visiting Ecuador as part of a broader Latin American diplomatic push, with negotiations beginning on a trade agreement and expanded security cooperation including surveillance technology and agricultural innovation.
Coffee grown in Quito's UNESCO-designated Chocó Andino Biosphere Reserve is gaining international recognition and finding growing markets in Europe, adding another dimension to Ecuador's agricultural export story.
International cacao prices have collapsed from a record $13,000 per ton in late 2024 to $3,581 in February 2026. Ecuadorian farmers now receive roughly $130 per quintal — down from $400 a year ago — squeezing margins in communities across the coast.
Fedexpor reports Ecuador’s non-petroleum, non-mining exports grew 16% to $25.2 billion in 2025. Shrimp led at $8.4 billion (+20%), cocoa surged 29% to $4.7 billion, and U.S.-bound exports jumped 30%. It’s the strongest diversification signal yet for the dollarized economy.
LATAM Cargo and Avianca transported over 40,000 tons of roses from Ecuador for Valentine’s Day 2026 — the country’s biggest annual flower export event. Ecuador is the world’s third-largest flower exporter, and February is the industry’s Super Bowl.
Heavy rains have inundated 700 hectares of farmland in Guayas province, putting approximately 38,000 agricultural producers at risk. Rice, corn, and cacao crops are the most affected as the rainy season intensifies heading into Carnival weekend.
Hundreds of rice producers from Guayas and Los Ríos met in Santa Lucía to deliver a manifesto demanding the government enforce minimum price floors and address what they call the worst crisis in three decades. Over 500,000 jobs and $100 million in losses hang in the balance.
President Noboa used the World Government Summit in Dubai to court international investment, pledging $600 million for infrastructure and signing an anti-corruption agreement with the UAE.
Ecuador's Ministry of Foreign Relations announced the country's first-ever H-2A agricultural visa placements, sending 150 workers to Florida farms this month.
