Colombia’s banana sector is hoping that this year will feature a recovery in its fortunes after a difficult, weather-affected 2010, while it is also aiming to consolidate exports to the EU.
Overall volumes in the country are estimated to have dropped by between two and three per cent during last year to between 92-93 million boxes, compared with 95m boxes in 2009, largely as a consequence of the heaviest rains recorded in the country’s history.
According to Roberto Hoyos, president of Colombian banana association Augura, the rains, caused by the La Niña weather phenomenon, hit the country in December, have left 1.2m hectares of agricultural land flooded across the South American nation.
He said some 2,000ha of banana plantations in the region of Antioquia, one of the country’s key banana production areas, were flooded during the heavy rains when rivers in the region burst their banks.
“The weather has affected production a lot - production was affected by winds and later the rains,” Hoyos told news agency Reuters.
Augura’s president said producers in Colombia were also negatively affected by the fall in value of the Colombian peso against the US dollar during 2010, with the currency dropping by 6.37 pert cent.
For the year ahead, Hoyos told Reuters that the sector was aiming to “at least” return volumes to around 95m boxes, and improve current productivity levels.
“The goal is to continue becoming more productive and efficient and increase the boxes per hectare to make the Colombian banana industry more productive and competitive,” he said.
Hoyos added that Augura and the sector as a whole was also aiming to consolidate exports to Europe, following the signing of a commercial agreement with the EU in 2009.
