While Ecuador is negotiating with the European Union for a downward revision of the tariff on bananas entering the EU market, the Commission on International Trade of the European Parliament has been calling for amendments to the regulation on the stabilisation mechanism for bananas, and better protection for banana producers in the outermost regions.
Ecuador is the world’s top banana exporter and the protocol for its free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union was signed on November 11, opening the door in the EU for banana imports at very competitive prices.
Ecuador is able to offer high quality bananas in large quantities in the first half of the year, when retail demand for bananas is high. In 2015, it was already Europe’s number two supplier despite having a tariff handicap relative to its competitors in African, Caribbean and Central American countries. Andean countries such as Colombia and Peru could also import at a lower tariff.
