Adrian Frater, News Editor
George Plunkett sanitises bananas harvested from his farm in Albion Mountain, St. Mary, for packaging. - IAN ALLEN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
WESTERN BUREAU:
STAKEHOLDERS SAY the implementation of a new tariff-only system for bananas entering the European Union, natural disasters and controlling diseases that affect bananas are the greatest challenges that they must overcome to sustain the viability of the banana industry.
"I believe the greatest challenge facing us is the new pricing arrangement in Europe," said Agriculture Minister Roger Clarke, in reference to the new EU tariff arrangement, which only offers duty-free status to the first 775,000 tonnes of fruit produced by African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries per annum. "Survival under this regime is going to require a high level of efficiency."
There is no word yet on the likely tariff to be implemented under the new tariff-only system which came into effect in January, but experts are hopeful that the EU will maintain some preferential treatment for bananas coming from ACP countries, which includes Jamaica.
Under the old system, bananas entering the EU from the 18-member ACP countries had duty-free access up to a quota of 775,000 tonnes. Of that amount, Jamaica had a quota of 105,000 tonnes and the Windward Islands responsible for supplying 294,000. On the other hand, bananas coming from non-ACP countries, commonly referred to as 'dollar bananas', attracted a tariff of 24 per cent, calculated based on the 1992 unit value.
In outlining some of the factors that are needed to promote efficiency, Minister Clarke said there is an urgent need for significant investment to expand production. This, he said, would entail proper planting programme, addressing factors such as proper irrigation and drainage.
HURRICANE DEVASTATION
The perennial threat of hurricanes, which has caused billions of dollars in damage over the years, is another concern for stakeholders. In 1980, Hurricane Allen so devastated the sector that four years later, in 1984, banana exports fell to a record low of 11,000 tonnes. The devastation was similar in 2004 when the sector suffered back-to-back hits from hurricanes Ivan and Charley and Dennis, and Emily to a lesser extent, in July 2005.
"Last year when we were fighting back after the hit we took from Hurricane Ivan, we got another hit," said Minister Clarke. "Factors such as droughts, floods and hurricanes will always be of great concern to us, because bananas cannot handle those conditions."
The matter of disease control is also of paramount concern to the banana sector, especially in areas such as St. James, where farmers are currently battling to save their crops from the dreaded Black Sigatoka disease, which surfaced a few years ago and still remains a threat.
"Our primary concern at this time is trying to battle the spread of the Black Sigatoka, which has been affecting our banana," said Glendon Harris, president of the St. James branch of the Jamaica Agricultural Society. "Currently, our effort is being frustrated by the difficulty we are having in sourcing a consistent supply of Orchard Oil, which is needed to spray the bananas to prevent the spread of the disease."
SOURCE OF EMPLOYMENT
Despite its many challenges, the banana sector still remains an important source of employment, although the number of persons employed in the sector has been falling steadily over the past 20 years, especially since rationalisation has opened the door for new technology.
"We have between 400-500 farmers in the small export sector," said Dr. Marshall Hall, the managing director of the Jamaica Producers Group, who noted farmers are constantly coming in and out of the sector.
"However, I would say that there are about 10,000 jobs tied up in the sector," continued Dr. Hall. "These cover truck drivers, the people peeling the bananas in the chips factories and the persons employed on the various farms."
In speaking to the impact of technology on the sector, Dr. Hall said significant strides have been made since the rationalisation of the sector started in the 1980s and 1990s. He said that Jamaica was now on par with other banana-producing countries in the use of new technology.
"Under the rationalisation of the industry, which started in the 1980s and 1990s, we have made rapid strides and we are now using the same technology as our competitors," said Dr. Hall. "We have all the sophisticated technology that other banana-producing countries are using."
Dr. Hall is confident that once our local small farmers utilise proper farming techniques, unlike their counterparts in sugar, they stand a great chance of surviving in the industry.
"I believe there is a future for the small farmers once they exercise good husbandry practices," said Dr. Hall. "There is currently a market for every single finger of banana we produce as the local chips industry is there to absorb what does not go into the export market."
