Top Ten Banana Countries

India Produces Most Bananas but Ecuador is King of Banana Exports

Nov 1, 2006 Daniel Workman

After rice, wheat, and corn, bananas are the fourth most widely consumed food for humans. Bananas are grown in 130 countries worldwide - more than any other fruit crop.

Bananas are either the green cooking variety or dessert bananas that are yellow and fully ripe when eaten. A banana is 75% water and is a valuable source of Vitamin A, Vitamin B6, Vitamin C as well as potassium. Bananas produce fruit throughout the year.

India leads the world in banana production, accounting for almost one-quarter of the worldwide crop. However, most Indian bananas are consumed domestically.

Top Banana Producing Nations - 2005

1. India ... 16.8 million metric tonnes
2. Brazil ... 6.7
3. China ... 6.4
4. Ecuador ... 5.9
5. Philippines ... 5.8
6. Indonesia ... 4.5
7. Costa Rica ... 2.2
8. Mexico & Thailand ... 2.0 each
9. Colombia & Burundi ... 1.6 each

From 10% to 15% of global banana crops are exported.

Top Banana Exporting Nations - 2005

1. Ecuador ... 4.7 million metric tonnes (+2.6% from 2004)
2. Philippines ... 1.9 (+6.0%)
3. Costa Rica ... 1.6 (-11.1%)
4. Colombia ... 1.5 (+7.4%)
5. Guatemala ... 1.1 (+6.7%)
6. Honduras ... 0.51 (-3.8%)
7. Panama ... 0.36 (-10%)
8. Cameroon ... 0.26 (-12.7%)
9. Brazil ... 0.21 (+12.7%)
10. Cote d'Ivoire ... 0.21 (-7.9%)

Four countries (Ecuador, Philippines, Costa Rica and Colombia) generate almost three-quarters of world banana exports. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Ecuador alone exports more than one-third of international banana exports.

And The Winners Are...

The dominant banana importers are European countries (29.2%), U.S. (27.5%), Japan (8.2%), Russia (7.9%) and Canada (3.5%).

In 2005 a record 15 Atlantic hurricanes caused significant damage to Central American banana plantations. Countries like Ecuador were spared from the fury of hurricanes in 2005, and therefore benefited from a tight supply of and firm prices for bananas.

The European Union dropped its import quotas on bananas in 2006 while raising tariffs on the fruit shipped from Latin America. This has restrained international sales, particularly for companies like Chiquita (CQB on NYSE) and Fresh Del Monte Produce (on FDP NYSE).

We often hear the term "banana republic" when discussing Central or Latin America. However, only Costa Rica, Honduras and Panama are banana republics - countries with economies that the banana trade dominates.

Sources

This analysis is based on latest statistics from the US Census Bureau - Foreign Trade Statistics and CIA World Factbook as of the date of article publication.

The copyright of the article Top Ten Banana Countries in International Trade is owned by Daniel Workman. Permission to republish Top Ten Banana Countries in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

bananas around the world