The situation with the canal worries Costa Rican banana farmers

The banana industry in Costa Rica welcomes 2024 “uncertainty” due to logistical and climate problems as well as the position of European supermarkets to ask for discounts of up to 8% on the price of fruit.

“Until 2024, there is a lot of uncertainty regarding logistical aspects because of the situation around the Panama Canal which could affect everyone, users and non-users alike. Added to this is the El Niño phenomenon, which is predicted to have global consequences,” the National Banana Corporation of Costa Rica (Corbana) said in a statement.

Corbana asked for better prices in Europe, especially from supermarkets, and that they do not continue with the strategy of lower purchase prices that they tried recently.

“Hundreds of thousands of families depend on the activity and export of bananas. Costa Rica and Latin America, its sustainability is of utmost importance for areas with few employment opportunities, which is why we seek an attitude of shared responsibility that allows the impact to be distributed throughout the supply chain and that producers are not the ones who take all the responsibility. load,” Corbana CEO Jorge Sauma said in a statement.

Corbana also explained that a significant increase in raw materials for the production of the cardboard box was announced. And he added that the prices of inputs such as cardboard and plastic still do not reach to the levels before the covid-19 pandemic.

The entity detailed that the specialist media outlet Reefer Trend reported on December 8 that European supermarkets were seeking to reduce the price of bananas by 1.30 euros ($1.43) per box, from 16.30 euros ($17.99) per box to 15 euros. ($16.55) stating that there are reductions in shipping costs due to the strengthening of the euro against the dollar.

“With the events that took place in 2023, the banana industry felt that the supermarkets had changed their minds in order not to drive the price of a box of bananas to ruinous levels, and that they understood the demand of Costa Rica and other Latin American countries to share responsibility in the banana distribution chain.” it is stated in the press release of Corban.

Corbana pointed out that Costa Rica is “the best in the world because it is produced in accordance with a sustainable social and environmental policy” and that the country “pays the best wages in the agricultural sector.”

This is shown by official data The banana sector creates about 40,000 direct and 100,000 indirect jobs in Costa Rica.

Costa Rica is one of the three most important banana exporting countries in the world with annual sales abroad of about 120 million boxes, which represents almost a billion dollars.

The latest official data shows that in October 2023, banana exports reached $985 million, surpassing what was recorded during 2022 when it amounted to $982 million.

As of 2016, Costa Rica has exported more than $1 billion in bananas annually, with the exception of 2022.