Colombia's banana production has fallen by 15% due to rainy weather over the winter and a rise in outbreaks of Moko disease, website Vanguardia.com reported.

National Federation of Banana Producers president Silverio González, said areas close to the Magdalena River were the most affected, with the Llanos Orientales and Quindío the worst hit by Moko due to high humidity levels.

"It's a soil bacterium which is lethal and difficult to control and now it has spread. It's damage will be more severe in areas where its presence was less," he was quoted as saying.

González described Moko as more deadly than the Sigatoka fungus, which has wreaked havoc in plantations in the Dominican Republic.

However, he said that the price for bananas at 750 COP (US$0.40) a kilo was good, and there was no smuggling of bananas coming in from Venezuela.

Related stories: Black Sigatoka fungus hits Dominican Republic's bananas

Photo: Promedmail.org

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