Popma starts new banana project in India

According to advisor Frits Popma of Popma Fruit Expertise there is an important issue in the banana world. "It's a fact that more and more bananas of increasingly good quality are being demanded. But unfortunately there are countries who can't meet these demands. They are Asian countries such as China and India."

A satisfied banana salesman in new Delhi, India

Frits indicates that almost no one in these countries takes the initiative to better the production. Multinationals retreat after having tried for a few years. "It's important that bananas are ripened properly but everyone one works like their neighbours, so nothing is improved. It's also accepted that around 25% is thrown away at the end of the day. Which is completely unnecessary. In Europe people are working on new techniques for ripening at the moment. This lowers the energy consumption and the production costs. With this technology and focused training, much can be achieved."

Cooling bananas with ice

This is why Popma started a new project in India. "This will start at the end of March, and I have high hopes for it. We want to improve the quality and ensure the production costs and losses are minimal. Frits has already seen how people work in various countries and he was shocked by it. "The biggest problem is that so much is thrown away, whilst people can do much more with this 'trash'. We've been to India before and we then realised a huge reduction of product loss." The advisor notes that little is exported from Asian countries whilst they have good opportunities. "But they have to compete with their competitors better products."

A banana boat in Bahrain

Frits also noticed that the export from ACP countries is decreasing. "They still have to compete with the dollar bananas. It's difficult for these companies, also because the quality often isn't optimal and the prices are higher. There are also often a lot of small growers there. If you have to start programmes there, it takes a lot of time. A lot has to be done." The question is what happened to all the EU money, that was given in 1992, when a quota was made?

On consumer level Frits thinks it's a shame that people sometimes treat fruit without respect. "The bananas grow up together, yet I often see buyers separate them. If we're all trying for a green and sustainable image, we should start with things like that. If you need 15 grammes of butter, you buy a whole packet."

Frits Popma
Popma Fruit Expertise
Hertesprong 41
4874 JA Etten Leur - Nederland
T: +31765032453
F: +31765035376
M: +31651188669
[email protected]
www.popmafruitexpertise.nl