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Latin American bananas are in short supply on the European market. For lack of sufficient supply, their price peaks at levels never seen this season. A situation that benefits the African banana.
The shortage of “dollar” bananas that come from across the Atlantic can be explained by an accumulation of bad news, “ quite classic “, explains one of our interlocutors: climate problems in Costa Rica, Colombia, and Ecuador, logistical difficulties because of transport costs which have exploded, and since 2021 a drop in the use of fertilizers and phytosanitary products – especially those to fight Sigatoka, a disease that wreaks havoc in plantations.
Result, ” there is not a single banana left on the market “Summarizes, by deliberately magnifying the line, Denis Loeillet, researcher at CIRAD (Centre for international cooperation in agricultural research for development).
Autumn prices at their highest since 2015
The banana market is specific in the sense that it is guided much more by supply than by demand, so it is this deficit across the Atlantic that explains current prices, even if demand in Ukraine and Russia has slowed down since the war.
While they had hit rock bottom in 2021 – 11.4 euros per 18.5 kg box – prices have started to climb since this summer, reaching an average of 15.5 euros per box imported in November. Europe, barometer drawn up by the economic unit Fruitrop/CIRAD. We have to go back to 2015 to find such a high average European price.
Retail prices have not been affected. Because the market is contractualized, that is to say that the prices in force depend on the contracts fixed at the end of the previous year. The current price explosion could be felt next year, however. But difficult to know however if the producers will profit from a larger margin.
The African banana takes over
In this context of shortage of dollar bananas, African sources are on the rise. ” The king of oil who sets the prices is the one who has green bananas to offer today “, explains Denis Loeillet. The only limit for the continent is the volumes that cannot be increased overnight.
In the absence of bananas, the intermediaries take advantage of this to market the lower categories which were usually reserved for the regional market and which are now finding new outlets for export.