There is a large potential for UA to assist with the recycling of urban wastes in a more comprehensive management strategy for waste reduction, collection and disposal. Local authorities of several cities are proposing to hold a symposium on UA to address these and other related matters. City land in Quetzal is controlled by an elite, while urban producers are forced to farm steep slopes on the periphery. The country's agricultural policy is designed and implemented to support exports crops, with little, if any, assistance to indigenous production for local consumption. Although there is extensive horticulture on peri-urban minifundios, this is not supported officially.
Traditional production focuses on grains.
Perhaps multicrop, biointensive production of vegetables and small livestock will be more economically feasible. There is currently a debate about what to do with UA in the longer term, as some urban planners still view it as a response to an emergency situation. It also has been providing technical assistance to producers. International support has come from Canada, Australia, USA and others. One constraint which the government needs to address is the fact that UA can compete for water resources which, however subsidized to the consumer, are nevertheless expensive to produce and deliver.