With April Fools on our doorstep, it's time we said goodbye to Banana Month. Thanks so much to everyone who came to our webinars, engaged with our traveling team, read our musings, and used our new POS in their stores!
In this Newsletter:
Webinar Recordings/Transcripts
Educational Resources from us and FTAM
Conflict in Ukraine impact on Banana Industry
Webinar recordings!
click here to watch the recording from our supply chain deep dive (passcode: #1banana). Due to a few technical challenges, some panelists are harder to hear - visit the links below for more info on their presentations.
Transcript from Narcisa, banana farmer of AsoGuabo Co-op
Slides from Walter, GM of Co-op Rio y Valle
Looking for a quick one-pager on our banana program? |
ICYMI - Learn more about Fairtrade:
Make a note on your calendars - World Fair Trade Day is 5/14!
Here is the round up of their most helpful information and materials!
- Learn more about Fairtrade Bananas and the Sustainable Shopper
- Read up on Fairtrade's work for the Banana Industry
- The latest Fairtrade Banana Impact Report
- and, The story of Johnny Navas, the AsoGuabo farmer featured on this year's mural in Minneapolis, MN
A note on the War in Ukraine: We have been saddened to hear about the violence that the people of Ukraine continue to face. While seemingly far removed from the world of small-scale farmers in Latin America, the war will have dramatic implications for banana farmers in Ecuador, which exports about 18% of its fruit to Russia. Within the first week of the conflict, 400,000 boxes of Ecuadorian bananas were without a market, causing the conventional case price to drop from $5-6 dollars to around $1 per case.
Fairtrade bananas are at this point unaffected by the war, though it is possible sellers may feel price pressure from the market glut. The many consequences of the war illustrate for us the importance of the Fairtrade model for traceability and solidarity during difficult times.