The world's largest banana exporter Ecuador has announced all phytosanitary measures have been met to export the fruit to Brazil, but the Latin American giant's response has been far from welcoming.

The Ministry of Agriculture is considering ways to stop or delay the entry of Ecuadorian bananas, according to reports from Globo Rural.

The story reported minister Antônio Andrade had proposed coordination with the Ministries of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade (MDIC) and Foreign Affairs (MRE) to prevent immediate entry.

Brazilian banana growers claim Ecuadorian bananas are subsidized and carry diseases including Black Sigatoka, which could be damaging to their crops.

A technical support submitted to Andrade by the industry outlines fears over six banana diseases in Ecuador that have become resistant to spraying over time, with growers in the Andean nation using four times more pesticides than their Brazilian counterparts.

Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp) plant specialist Wilson da Silva Moraes, told the publication that as the concentration of banana export ownership was so high in Ecuador, importing this fruit would exclusively benefit "trade with North America and Brazilian retailers".

Ribeira Valley Association of Banana Growers (Abavar) executive secretary Ronnei Lima do Nascimento, said Ecuadorian fruit would be able to arrive in Sao Paulo at a price below the cost of production for the growers in his group.

The story reported the Ribeira Valley accounted for 70% of banana production in Sao Paulo state.

Brazil is the third largest producer of bananas in the world, producing 7.5 million tons per year. The leaading production states are São Paulo, Bahia, Santa Catarina, Minas Gerais, Pará, Ceará and Pernambuco, accounting for 74% of domestically grown bananas.

The story reported the industry generates 520,000 direct jobs in Brazil and two million indirect positions.

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