Week 4

At the start of the week, the team finished editing the background and submitted it. Once this was completed, work on the methodology began, rewriting all parts of it. The team also began developing a seal to use in the branding aspect of the business plan. Research was also done on some labor statistics for different regions of the island. Several more supermarket interviews were conducted, their answers solidifying answers we had already received from previous interviews. The team also surveyed two produce departments of supermarkets, looking at the amount of food produced locally and imported as well as receiving a list of what there was a market for. Lastly, research into the certification of USDA Organic was conducted so that it can be included in the education section of the report.

The following day, the team call Myra from the farmers cooperative the previous weekend. The team discovered that the cooperative was set up on the basis of trying to help Puerto Rico's food self-sufficiency by giving small farmers a place to sell their goods, essentially the central theme of this project. She also gave insight on to the difficulties of starting a cooperative and the challenges faced in the market. After this, the team worked on finishing the methodology and editing the comments on the new background.

On Thursday, the team submitted the new methodology and began writing the results, team self assessment, and executive summary, the first two being due at 11:00 PM. The team also met with Magaly Figueroa, a natural resource specialist at the International Institute of Tropical Forestry, a division of the U.S. Forest Service. She knew multiple contacts that would be of great help to the project including George Felix who has his PhD in agroforestry. The following day, the team had a conference call with Pedro in the morning. Afterwards, we worked on finishing and submitting the executive summary as well as working on the recommendations section.