FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ISSUE

By Anup Shah, This Page Last Updated Sunday, January 03, 2010.

The Banana Trade War

"Although bananas may only look like a fruit, they represent a wide variety of environmental, economic, social, and political problems. The banana trade symbolizes economic imperialism, injustices in the global trade market, and the globalization of the agricultural economy. Bananas are also number four on the list of staple crops in the world and one of the biggest profit makers in supermarkets, making them critical for economic and global food security. As one of the first tropical fruits to be exported, bananas were a cheap way to bring “the tropics” to North America and Europe."

Bananas are Serious Business

Bananas are globally one of the most commonly eaten fruit, not just in the tropics where they are usually grown, but in regions like North America and Europe. However, the way bananas are produced and exported gives an insight into a number of global issues.

In a number of countries such as Brazil and India, large amounts of bananas are produced but consumed mostly locally. Other regions such as Central America and the Caribbean include a large number of banana exporters. Some of the nations in these regions are quite dependent on banana exports, often to their former colonial rulers.