Traditional Farmers or Modern Businessmen? Religious Differentiation and Entrepreneurship in a Kleine Gemeinde Mennonite Community in Belize

Abstract

This article addresses the religious and entrepreneurial differentiation within Spanish Lookout, a Mennonite community in the Cayo district in Belize, Central America. In spite of the fact that most Mennonites live more or less on the edge of society, they have been able to establish a strong and stable economic position within Belize, although the different communities show a clear variation when it comes to social as well as in economic activities. Since their migration from Mexico to Belize in 1958, the Mennonites of Spanish Lookout, one of the modern communities, have developed a more differentiated economical system with commercial agriculture and agribusiness. The Mennonites maintain a remarkable transnational network, which consists of Mennonite communities and organizations in countries like Canada, the United States of America, and Mexico. These networks introduce innovations on different levels: from modern or better machines, to religious and social changes. The influences from Mennonites outside Belize on the social-economic system of the Spanish Lookout Mennonites, along with the developments within the community, will be the main focus of this article.

The Hoover Mennonites in Belize: A History of Expansion in the Shadow of Separation

“…In 1958, several groups of Mennonites (Kleine Gemeinde and Old Colony) from Mexico established their first settlements in Belize, by invitation of the government of British Honduras. To the government, the Mennonite farmers represented reliability, and have since proven to be valuable business partners for the other inhabitants of Belize (Roessingh and Schoonderwoerd 2005).…”

"No Sunday Business": Navigating Religious Rules and Business Opportunities in the Shipyard Mennonite Settlement, Belize

“…Since their migration in 1958, the number of Belizean Mennonites has grown to over 10,000 in 2015, spread over 13 settlements. They have established a strong and stable economic presence within the country through agriculture and trade (Roessingh and Schoonderwoerd 2005).…”

Social capital and Mennonite entrepreneurship: the case of Circle R in Blue Creek, Northern Belize

“…As the Old Colony Mennonites maintained their traditional values in life and in their agricultural practices, they experienced more problems than other communities in expanding their cultivated acreage (Hillegers, 2005). The group that came down to settle in Spanish Lookout (see Figure 1), in the Cayo district, derived from the 'Kleine Gemeinde' congregation that was founded in 1874 as a response to the establishment of the Russian Mennonite Church (Loewen, 1993;2006;Roessingh and Schoonderwoerd, 2005 At present, the community counts about 800 inhabitants and is known as an advanced Mennonite community in the country. On the contrary, when the Mennonites arrived in Blue Creek in 1958 this area was nothing more than a dense jungle, covered by forests interspersed with swamp savannas with tacky and though soils (Hillegers, 2005).…”

“…The Blue Creek Mennonites distinguish themselves by making use of a more developed economic system of commercial agriculture and agribusiness in their community (Roessingh and Schoonderwoerd, 2005). The organisations in the community do not only produce in order to supply the inhabitants of Blue Creek, but export their products to the local market as well.…”

“…The organisations in the community do not only produce in order to supply the inhabitants of Blue Creek, but export their products to the local market as well. The Mennonites created a well-organised network of distribution and transport and deliver quality products; this way their organisations became dominant businesses in the country (Roessingh and Schoonderwoerd, 2005). The businesses that are established by Blue Creek Mennonites are all related to agro-culture; for example Maya Papaya produces papayas, Caribbean Chicken is a chicken slaughterhouse, Valley Ranch Enterprises is a construction company, the Rempels maintain a mechanic shop, practice crop dusting and raise cattle and Circle R is a rice mill.…”