LATIN AMERICA’S BANANA TRADE

Grown commercially in 120 countries, bananas are among the top choices of consumers.  Interestingly, of all bananas grown, less than 25% are exported.  India is the top country for the production of bananas, followed by Brazil, the Philippines, Ecuador, Indonesia, China, Colombia, Burundi, Costa Rica, and then Thailand.  Of all exporters, Ecuador ranks at number one, supplying more than 2.5 millions tons to various international markets.

While most people think a banana is a banana, the truth is that you will discover more than 40 different species of this fruit to include plantains, along with literally hundreds of manmade hybrid species.  Grown on trees that can reach upwards of 16 feet, bananas are not just delicious but also loaded with potassium magnesium, vitamin A and C, and other important nutrients.  The commercial bananas are a mutant of the type of fruit grown in the wild, which have seeds.  The roots of banana trees are very short, which makes them vulnerable to heavy winds.

Typically, a banana tree will begin to bear fruit around age nine months, becoming capable of producing one to two crops annually.  The species seen most often with commercial trade is the Musa paradisiaa.  Another common type of banana is called the Musa canvendihii but usually in areas with slightly cooler climates.  Regardless, both species are delicious to eat.

The bananas grown for commercial trade are grown on large plantations with rich soil.  To ensure a quality crop, the use of pesticides must be monitored carefully and even the harvesting must be done in a controlled manner to ensure ripeness, quality, and size of the fruit.  To propagate bananas, pieces of banana or side shoots are used.  Then, the fruit is harvested while still green and unripe.  This way, the bananas are picked, and handled easier without worry of damage such as bruising.

Once the fruit is off the tree, it is boxed into cartons of equal weights, usually between 20 and 40 pounds.  Depending on the supplier, some will put the green fruit in a closed off shed, introducing them to acetylene or ethylene gas, which helps to ripen them artificially.  In this case, the bananas must be shipped in cooled containers, which are then stored in temperature controlled warehouses.

One of the challenges with the banana trade is that we now see a chronic overcapacity of production, specific to markets in the Caribbean, Pacific, and African countries.  The problem is that these countries cannot keep up with the banana trade in Latin America where plantations are common, processes are organized, and many owned y multinational corporations, equating to cheap labor and better balance of the economics associated with growing this fruit.