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 Ecuador
The country's cuisine includes a variety of different banana types such as "oritos" (sweet baby bananas): yellow eating bananas which are short, fat and very sweet. A related fruit, plantains or "plátanos" (pronounced “PLAH-ta-nohs”), are also grown extensively in Ecuador, and are usually cooked for eating, both when green and at various stages of ripening. In the coastal areas, a popular side dish served is Patacones, or fried plantains. Plantains are eaten in deep fried form or baked or boiled and used in a wide variety of dishes. The green variety is unripe and is known as "verde", the Spanish word for green. When they are ripe they turn yellow and then black . Green plantains are commonly cut into thin slices and deep fried. These are known as "chifles" and are very popular, much like potato chips, used to accompany ceviches and many other dishes; the "maqueño" type is especially good for chifles. "Viche" is a soup containing banana, calamari, conch, crab, crawfish, fish, and peanuts.