Bananas

Banana production and labor conditions are very similar to many of the various foods we have looked at in this class and have read about in Stuffed and Starved. Like we have learned about with chocolate, coffee and various other foods, the conditions in which bananas are grown in are extremely labor intensive and inhumane. Not to mention the devastating effects that these plantations have had on our environment, natural resources and climate. Also like many of the foods we have studied thus far, the entire global banana industry is almost entirely controlled by only three companies; Dole, Chiquita, and Del Monte. These three corporations alone decide where these bananas come from, how much they will cost, and where in the world they are exported to.



Because of the low elevation, arid, tropic climate and amount of rainfall, almost all banana production takes place in Central America, specifically along the Caribbean coast. The largest exporters of bananas are Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, and Honduras, with this industry transforming these countries politically, economically, and socially. “The revenue from bananas is so promising that many Central American governments have done almost anything to attract the fruit companies.” The United States has become the largest importer of the fruit bringing in over 3.7 million tons of them each year. Since these countries rely so heavily on the income that bananas bring them, the United States and these large corporations have been able to manipulate the system and take advantage of the poverty and reliance in order to make large profits. “Although the foreign exchange from banana exports is great, the potential economic earnings are often not fully realized by the exporting countries. Of world banana trade as a whole, "only 11.5% of the total value of bananas generated at the retail level accrues as retained value to the national economies which support them". The remaining 88.5% accrues to foreign enterprises such as transnationals, wholesalers, and retailers, owned and operated by citizens of importing countries. If exporting countries could gain more control over the banana industry, it is possible that they could increase their export earnings.” These companies have set up a system in which the bananas can be produced for next to nothing, because the native people of these countries are working in awful conditions, earning just cents a day. It is after the bananas are exported out of the country when the real money and profits are made, leaving the people who are doing all of the real work with nothing. “While supervisors and executives live in large one and two family homes with access to luxuries such as air conditioning, country clubs, swimming pools, bowling alleys, and golf courses, a majority of the workers live in squalor. The typical company barrack is a 2.3 by 3.3 meter room occupied by as many as four people. Bars, brothels, and soccer fields are the primary social activities for workers. Alcoholism, violence, disease, sexual abuse, drug addiction, prostitution, crime, racism, erosion of the family unit, and juvenile delinquency are common problems on the plantation.” These workers are required to work 10-14 hour days in extremely hot weather, six or seven days per week. They are never guaranteed breaks, salaries, or vacations and often denied health care. They are exposed to dangerous pesticides and chemicals which create concerning health problems such as sterility in many of the workers. There are issues of sexual and verbal harassment, child exploitation, violence, assassinations, assaults, and arrests. There are anti-slavery laws in place but little is done to protect these men, women and children from these conditions. “The Central American governments have done almost anything to attract the potential export revenues, employment, and development provided by the banana industry, allowing the fruit companies to gain great political power. Banana companies have used this to their advantage, receiving large tracts of land at little to no cost, low export taxes, and immunity from labor and environmental laws”.



Besides the labor conditions, the environmental impact has been heartbreaking. Thousands of valuable acres of forest are cut down each year to make room for plantations. The rapid rate of deforestation is speeding the process of global warming, and has led to many species being added to the endangered species list because their natural habitats are being destroyed. The process in which bananas are produced and cultivated leads to soil erosion, water pollution, and chemical contamination. “The construction of banana plantations along the lowland ecosystems of Central America has resulted in numerous ecological and social transformations. Forests have been cleared, rivers altered, landscapes poisoned, politicians bought, and governments overthrown. Despite the known problems associated with the banana industry, Central American people and governments often welcome the fruit companies for the economic benefits they can provide. The continued destruction of the natural environment must end but not at the expense of the revenue and employment provided by the industry.”