Mike Knowles

Those of you not keeping a close eye on the on-going wrangling over the European Union’s banana regime could be forgiven for thinking that nothing has changed in the last decade. In 1997, the World Trade Organisation called on the EU to change its import system; ten years on, it’s the same story. No-one seems any happier about their position: since the single-tariff came into effect in 2006, ACP countries have fared better than predicted, but many say they would have preferred to keep the old system; dollar countries meanwhile have once again labelled the regime “discriminatory”. Ecuador is again leading a challenge through the WTO, and once again the organisation has set up a panel to investigate. Plus ça change and all that.

I have to say, making sense of the whole debate is sometimes beyond me. Everyone has a different view, claims of vested interests continue to be thrown around like confetti and all the while the lawyers are raking it in. Companies involved in the business actually employ people specifically to make sense of the myriad rules and regulations governing the industry. The additional expense involved in maintaining a staff of legally trained professionals whose sole task it is to wade knee-deep through the political and commercial red tape in order to keep their employers floating in the right direction must be huge; surely the money would be far better spent on promoting brands and boosting consumption in a free and open market?

In no other sector of the fresh produce business has bureaucracy held such sway for so long. EU officials have tried to manage the transition to a free and open market, encouraging countries like the UK and France to take more dollar bananas while pushing for the likes of Germany and Scandinavia to source a greater volume of ACP fruit. But in commercial terms at least, the European banana market is crying out to be liberated from its political shackles. As several of the articles in our lead feature suggest, there is huge potential for enlivening the trade and turning it into the kind of segmented, multi-faceted market that has emerged for other products in the last few years, notably for tomatoes, citrus and apples. Banana consumption may not be growing, but organic and Fairtrade sales are increasing, while new smaller varieties like Chiquita Minis are proof that diversification can help the banana trade catch up with the rest of the fresh produce business.