From 1899 to 1984, the United Fruit Company was granted a large land concession in Costa Rica by the government; this parcel made up about 9% of the total land area of Costa Rica during this time period. This meant that they owned and largely controlled a large parcel of land on which to conduct their operations. The company also required workers to live on the land. Mendez Chacon and Van Patten (2021) seek to understand the short-term and long-term effect of allowing a private firm to invest in a country and community in this way