Charity speaks out on banana pricing

A development charity has slammed banana price-cutting tactics from Asda and Morrisons.

ActionAid said last week’s cuts - which saw Asda drop prices from 87p to 78p a kilo, and that move matched by Morrisons - would be a serious setback in helping improve working conditions for plantation workers in the developing world.

Jenny Ricks, ActionAid campaigner, told the Guardian: “Plantations can’t live up to retailers’ demands for decent working conditions if they hammer down prices like this.”

An Asda spokesman told the newspaper: “Rest assured our growers are absolutely not missing out. The price we pay them is not affected.”