Despite the complications due to the signing of contracts that the banana sector has been dragging on since the end of 2022, fruit exports showed growth in the first month of 2023. According to data from the Banana Marketing and Export Association (Acorbanec), banana exports in the first month of the year amounted to 35.92 million boxes, 5.41% more than in the same period in 2022, when they amounted to 34.08 million boxes.

However, this good start does not match what was exported in January 2021 and 2020 with 37.5 million and 37.6 million cases respectively. However, it beat the figures for 2019 and 2018, when 31.7 million and 32.5 million cases were shipped, respectively.

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Richard Salazar, CEO of Acorbanec, assures that one of the reasons for good exports in January is the climate factor that helped to increase production.

“In addition to the fact that there are farms that have recovered, that have been adequately maintained, the weather has already greatly helped to produce more, especially in the month of January,” explained Salazar, who added that it is also about the period of high demand, the cold period, on destination markets.

“Practically everything that was produced was exported,” said the leader, who also pointed out that there was a greater supply in the shipping areas, which made it possible to place the fruit in different destinations.

This is reflected in the export figures by destination. Of the 35.92 million boxes exported last January, 31.94% went to the European Union (27 countries); 23.10% to Russia; 13.58% to the Middle East; 12.70% to the United States; 4.48% to the southern cone; 4.18% was exported to Africa; 3.12% to East Asia; 2.87% towards Central Asia; 1.51% towards Eastern Europe; 1.24% to the United Kingdom; 0.80% to Oceania (New Zealand); 0.35% according to EFTA (Norway); 0.01% in Canada; and 0.13% to other markets.

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Salazar highlighted the main increases reflected in the European Union with 31.39%, the United Kingdom with a growth of 36.32%, the United States 23.20%, Africa 14.24%, Central Asia 7.64%, Russia 1, 49% and Oceania with 0.28%.

However, there are also decreases in the Middle East (-6.54%), the Southern Cone (-15.59%), East Asia (-30.15%), Eastern Europe (-68.21%) and EFTA ( -16.72%).

As for the expectations for the end of February, Salazar believes that the trend will continue in that month and in March. “The trend will continue for the same reason, due to climate factors… It persisted for February and I’m sure it will persist for March,” said the spokesman for Ačorbanec.