Banana production in Brazil
Banana production in Brazil accounts for approximately 10% of the entire world banana production, making Brazil a major banana-producing country in the world. Production has steadily increased over the years, rising from 5.4 million tonnes in 1997 to almost 7 million tonnes in 2007. In 2000, Brazil was fourth, behind India, Uganda and Ecuador, in banana production. By 2006, Brazil became the second largest banana-producer, behind only India, followed by China, Ecuador and the Philippines. Most of the bananas produced are consumed domestically. Gross exports has increased from 12.5 thousand tonnes in 1995 to more than 220 thousand tonnes in 2002 and 2003, mostly to neighbours Argentina and Uruguay, but these figures are still far behind industry leaders such as Ecuador, Costa Rica, the Philippines and Colombia which export more than a million tonnes of bananas annually.
Banana production in the Caribbean
Banana cultivation is a major employer of rural labor as it is a labor-intensive industry. In Dominica, it is the second largest employer after the government, providing work for 6,000 farmers with another 700 employed at boxing plants. In St. Lucia, it provides employment for about 10,000 workers. In St.Vincent, there are about 5,000 banana growers.The small size of farms makes for inefficient production and contributes to a low standard of living. In Dominica, 8% of the fruit is supplied by 51% of the banana farming population, medium growers supply 41% and over 51% is supplied by large land holders. In the Windward group generally, the majority of the farming population owns less than a third of the banana acreage. In Grenada, there are a large number of peasant plots given to intercrop cultivation with bananas. In St. Vincent, the pattern is the same, although output is greater from the estates. The small size of farms provides a low income to farmers as they are unable to apply fertilizers or minimize the risk of insect pests and diseases.