Latin American banana industry representatives have held their first meeting with Rainforest Alliance CEO Santiago Gowland, amid an increasing challenging economic scenario for growers.

Producers and exporters of bananas, plantains and other musaceae from Ecuador, Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama and the Dominican Republic were present at the meeting. 

The countries account for 65% of global banana production and are the largest global exporters, led by Ecuador.

"As banana producers and exporters, we are pleased that Mr. Santiago Gowland, appointed CEO of the Rainforest Alliance in May 2021, received us, listened to us and shared our concerns," the Banana Cluster said.

"The meeting had the tone of a general presentation and of setting new points to work on further to achieve the common goal of a more sustainable world every day. The main topic of the meeting was the implementation of the new sustainability standard 2022, the most important one in the relationship so far.

"In this way, we are pleased that the Rainforest Alliance is committed to undertake a review process and provide clarity on the application criteria in order to be clear and precise on the responsibilities of each of the parties."

The Cluster added that these criteria are necessary so that producers, who have to adapt to the regulation, know which practices are permitted according to the certifier.

It added that perhaps the appropriate thing to do, given the complexity of the regulation, is to establish a reasonable and realistic transitional regime to implement it properly over time - especially for the smallest and most vulnerable producers.

"Both Rainforest Alliance and the banana producers share the diagnosis that the current scenario is detrimental to farmers, the vast majority of whom are small and medium-sized family businesses that are fundamental to local economies," it said.

"Rising inflation, increasing costs of basic inputs (fertilisers, packaging, plastics, fuel), rising freight rates and pressure from supermarkets threaten the economic sustainability of the sector, which is key to ensuring social and environmental sustainability.

"Faced with this situation, Mr. Gowland admits that the Rainforest Alliance maintains an active dialogue with supermarkets where producers should be incorporated, a point that we also share."

The Cluster added that the banana sector has been "one of the biggest victims in recent years".

"The rigorous and exemplary environmental compliance with European Union regulations and the efforts rewarded by the International Labour Organisation in terms of wages, among others, are suffering a severe setback due to pressure from supermarkets and the threat of new pests and diseases such as fusarium RT4," it said. "So this first step with the Rainforest Alliance can be a start on the road to success."