Latin American banana producers seek better pay as El Niño weather cuts output

Colombian Caribbean banana exports fell 32% between July and September

Exports from Colombia’s Caribbean region fell 32% to $122m (£91m) between July and September this year, according to the Association of Banana Growers of Magdalena and La Guajira, as reported by the trade publication Fruitnet. Fruitnet said that in September alone, shipments were down 42% year on year, with earnings close to halving to $40m from $70m. Latin American banana producers are seeking better pay to help cope with climate change as extreme weather during this year’s super El Niño event reduces production. Fairtrade said high winds in parts of Colombia and heavy rainfall in Peru and Ecuador are already affecting production, while Dominican Republic farmers are expected to face drought.

“Given the risks threatening the continuity of banana production, we are calling on international markets to foster commercial conditions that recognise actual production costs and contribute to the sector’s sustainability,” the association said. It said climate-related productivity losses and a decline in earnings from exports made worse by currency issues was “undermining the economic sustainability of the industry.”

High winds in parts of Colombia — one of the biggest suppliers to the UK market, where droughts are predicted in some regions this year — and heavy rainfall in Peru and Ecuador were already affecting production, according to the Fairtrade Foundation, an ethical trade body. In the Dominican Republic, farmers were expected to face drought conditions, with forecasts of drier and warmer than usual conditions.

Fairtrade research suggests that during the previous El Niño cycle, productivity across its farmers and workers dropped by 13% in the Dominican Republic, 22% in Ecuador and 6% in Peru compared with the year before. The El Niño event in 1983, one of the strongest ever recorded, affected 15% of total planted banana area in Ecuador, with a reduction in exports of 36%.

Dr Carley-Jane Stanton, a climate and environment lead at Fairtrade, said this El Niño was expected to bring more extreme weather, including heavy rainfall and strong winds, and “we expect the impacts for producers to be more severe” than in the 23-24 cycle, she said.

Research by the Ethical Trading Initiative found that prices paid to suppliers in 2026 did not even cover basic production costs for 66.7% of them. The Guardian reported that bananas were becoming harder and more expensive to produce, while supermarket prices had remained unchanged for almost 40 years despite rising costs for fertiliser, fuel and labour.

Fairtrade is calling for legislation in the UK to tackle unfair trading practices, including low or late payments to farmers and contracts that push risk down the supply chain. The foundation said this would let producers invest more in improving their crops’ resilience to severe weather and the increased likelihood of pests and diseases.

Caoimhe Buckley, the chief corporate affairs officer at the large supplier Fyffes, said: “The long-term sustainability of the banana sector … cannot be separated from purchasing practices. The price of bananas in the supermarket needs to recognise the real and sustainable cost of production, including labour and decent wages, environmental management, human-rights due diligence and the investment necessary to adapt to climate change.”

Some businesses, including Sainsbury’s, the Co-op and Waitrose, have taken voluntary steps by sourcing only Fairtrade bananas, which guarantee a minimum price. The foundation said more work remained.

The Ethical Trading Initiative said producers needed more help to adapt to or mitigate climatic changes. It cited research for the Inter-American Development Bank published in 2020 suggesting that suitable land for banana cultivation could shrink by an average of 61% across Latin America and the Caribbean by 2050.

Fairtrade said worker health was also expected to be affected by more extreme weather. Ever Antonio Flores Muños, a worker at the Agrosiete banana producer in Colombia, told Fairtrade: “Over the past 10 years the climate has changed a lot. It’s been getting much hotter … it’s really intense. Some places have had losses due to the climate, flooding, strong winds. It’s going to affect all of us – our workers, colleagues – everything will be at great risk, and our wages will decrease.”

Eleanor Harrison, the chief executive of Fairtrade, said: “The UK’s banana supply depends on the people growing our bananas having the resources they need to adapt to climate change, and to invest in their future. Fair prices, climate resilience and decent work go hand in hand.”