Costa Rica: Big banana producers sell their product to multinationals

Small banana and producers from Costa Rica were left out of contract negotiations have few opportunities to sell their products. Meanwhile, the producers with large volumes sold their fruit to large multinational companies that will help them sell on to the rest of the world.

In order to regulate prices and promote fair trade, Corbana, a company belonging to the Government, awards fixed priced contracts to the companies that have enough volume to cover customer needs. "This year, we were unable to reach a deal so we have to sell our products outside these contracts," stated Sonia Alvarado, of the Hispacori company. As a result, their product is less competitive, as they don't have pre-established prices and have to offer their fruit at higher prices - spot price or current price. It also means they don't have stable shipments for a certain duration. "For us, the box of premium bananas currently stands at more than 9.45 dollars in the FOB market, not in the fixed one. A second class banana costs about 7 dollars. The difference between the varieties is almost a two dollars," Alvarado stated. However, this company doesn't know what price Corbana set to the companies that have been awarded a contract.

The Costa Rican bananas are highly demanded in different countries, such as Russia, the United Kingdom, USA, and Germany. It is a product that can be found 12 months of the year, although in the first half of the year its price is always higher.