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CSR commitments yield results for Costa Rica
volume in 2020, making it the second biggest market behind the European Union which absorbed 43 per cent of shipments.
Steady productivity increases have enabled Costa Rica’s banana industry to retain its competitive edge while maintaining high social and environmental standards.
Costa Rica’s banana acreage has remained fairly stable over the past decade and currently stands at just below 43,500ha. During that time, improved efficiency on farms
by Maura Maxwell
has delivered steady increases in productivity.
@maurafruitnet
“Thanks to continuous
A
investments in scientific
from strong demand during the
average per-hectare yield of 3,020
Covid crisis. Thanks it its low cost,
boxes, equivalent to 54.8 tonnes per
high nutritional value and safe,
year,” Sauma explains. “Given that
individual “packaging”, it is in many
our wages are higher than in other
ways the ideal pandemic food.
regional producing countries, we
s a staple of grocery
research and efforts to improve
baskets the world over,
sustainability over the past 30 years
the banana has benefited
we are today able to achieve an
For Costa Rica, this translated
simply wouldn’t be able to compete
into record exports of US$1.139bn
with other suppliers if it weren’t for
last year, an increase of 8.6 per
our productivity.”
cent on 2019. Jorge Sauma, boss of national banana corporation
without eroding its current
Corbana, says the results are all
high social and environmental
the more remarkable given the
standards poses an ongoing
contraction in both the country’s
challenge for Costa Rica, but the
and the global economy last year.
biggest challenge facing the sector
Nevertheless, he points out that
going forward is to prevent the
the sector faces serious challenges
entry of Fusarium wilt TR4, which
going forward. In the short term,
has now been detected in three
low temperatures and excess
Latin American countries.
rainfall have reduced the country’s
Since July 2020, Costa Rica
exportable volume in the first few
has been under a national
months of 2021, with shipments
phytosanitary emergency, enabling
down 5 per cent in the first quarter
it to take preventative measures to
compared with the year-earlier
protect the banana industry and
period. (Sauma expects production
safeguard the 140,000 direct and
to return to normal levels in the
indirect jobs that it generates.
second quarter, although he
Sauma acknowledges, however,
acknowledges that “nothing is a
that controlling TR4 is a global
certainty when it comes to the
endeavour that requires
climate”.)
cooperation between different
He notes that the loss of
22
Maintaining its competitiveness
countries. “As a member of the FAO
production in Honduras and
World Banana Forum and the
Guatemala due to hurricanes Eta
Global Alliance against TR4, which
and Iota last year has resulted
is coordinated by the Inter-
in Costa Rica diverting greater
American Institute for Agricultural
volumes to the US market so far
Cooperation, Corbana is playing an
ABOVE—Jorge Sauma says Costa Rica is playing a key role in
this year. The US took 35 per cent
important role in the fight against
the global fight against Panama disease TR4
of Costa Rica’s total shipment
TR4,” he says. _
fresh focus banana 2021
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