Latin American banana producing and exporting countries are concerned about a new strain of the Panama disease. This new strain of the fungus has not yet appeared in the region, which, according to the FAO, provides 90% of the bananas consumed in the world.
This concern was expressed on Tuesday March 31, during the Ministerial Meeting of Agriculture, which was held in Guayaquil and was attended by deputy ministers and heads of state agricultural entities of a group of Latin American countries that cultivate bananas.
Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture, which was held in Guayaquil. Photo EL COMERCIO
The R1 variety of the fungus has affected the Latin American plantations in the past. According to Agrocalidad, it has already damaged some 17,000 hectares in the country, leaving losses for the industry for about $2,300 million dollars. The R4T (Tropical Race 4) variety, which concerns the producers, is affecting plantations in Africa, Asia and parts of Australia, but not in Latin America.
There are a little more than 4 million tons of bananas crops in the world, of which Latin America grows 3.6 million. According to Agrocalidad, the Panama disease causes widespread rot in the plant. The ministerial appointment in Guayaquil is the follow up of a prior technical workshop, also held at the Main Port, with specialists from the growing countries in the region. A working group was already formed at that workshop and contingency plans were reviewed to prevent the entry of this variant of the fungus.
Eduardo Ledesma, executive director of the Ecuadorian Association of Banana Exporters, outlined the need to protect the Ecuadorian banana against this and other diseases that could jeopardize banana production. "The banana represents 23% of non-oil exports, and 26% of the agricultural GDP," he said. He also stated that most of the plantations were in the hands of small farmers.
"70% of the banana producers in the country don't have more than 20 hectares of crops". Ecuador expects to close 2015 with an estimated 300 million cases exported. In 2014 the sector exported 298 million boxes of fruit.
Source: ElComercio.com