The banana sector is seeking to increase its international competitiveness with the creation of the Undersecretary of Banana post, the application of the Occupational Health and Safety Manual for the banana industry, and an agreement with the academy to carry out a sustainability study.
According to representatives of the banana sector, the changes that are taking place to strengthen the production and marketing of the fruit create great expectations in the sector, mainly because they are attacking the lack of respect for contracts and the banana box's official price.
The manual on job security, which was launched last week by the Ministers of Labor and Agriculture in El Oro, has had positive reviews because it is in line with the sector's concerns, stated Eduardo Ledesma and Paul Gonzalez, representatives of exporters and banana producers.
Competitiveness
According to Paul Gonzalez, the president of the Machala Agricultural Center and member of the Table of Negotiations for the commercialization of bananas, the creation of regulations for banana workers is just the beginning of the multiple changes that the sector is starting to make to continue to maintain its position in the international markets.
"The sector's external and internal detractors that are saying we are threatening the lives and safety of our workers, which is not the case, should work with the sector instead of denigrating it," the official said.
Producers are aware that there is still much to improve in their technification process, but they will continue to move forward with it. This, however, requires the sector to unite and that government policies should guarantee productivity and marketing in safe markets.
"The agreement was already signed with Davis (University of California), which is the number one institute in the world on sustainability. If something has to be corrected, we will correct it, always seeking to take care of our people and to be the best in the world," Gonzalez said.
Source: diariopinion.com