The wait for the new price of a box of bananas, to become official in 2013, has been extended. The Ministry of Agriculture (Magap), which has the final word on it, has not decided yet.
Producers want it to increase from $5.50 to $6.50 or $6.80, while exporters insist on it staying the same. Since 2007, the price of bananas, which was $3.50 back then, has increased by 2 dollars until 2011, when it reached $5.50, which is still the current price. Producers argue that the production costs for a 43 pound box are close to $5; "besides, they also claim that fertilisers and other resources have greatly increased in price," said Wilfrido Macías, a banana producer from Los Ríos.
Exporters, on the other hand, represented by Eduardo Ledesma, claim that the conditions of the foreign markets must be taken into consideration. Ledesma also states that the ¢20 tariff on Ecuadorian bananas to be introduced in 2012 will be paid by the importers and not the producers.
Source: Hoy.com.ec