Research from /True Price/TruCost and Fairtrade found that the social and environmental costs of Fairtrade bananas are significantly less than other bananas.
The study pegged the “hidden damage” in one box of bananas at $6.70 per carton, according to a news release. That compares with external costs of $3.65 per carton for Fairtrade bananas, 45% less than the overall sector.
According to the release, the U.S. in 2017 imported nearly 5.2 million tons of bananas, making it the world’s top importer of bananas.
Achieving low prices that shoppers expect often means externalizing costs and pushing pressure far down the supply chain, Fairtrade said in the release. That results in negative results for people and the environment, the group said.
The study found that the externalized costs in the banana sector amount to an average of $6.70 dollars per box, much of this due to social costs (60%), including inadequate wages, lack of social security, unsafe working conditions, and an inadequate income for small farmers. The largest environmental costs are land use, water exhaustion, and climate change, the study said.
By way of comparison, Fairtrade bananas were found to have average external costs of $3.65 per box of bananas, 45% less than the overall sector.
Under the Fairtrade Standards, according to the release, producers and industry actors must pay fairer wages/prices, invest in community programs, create safe and healthy workplaces, negotiate more transparently, and ensure rights outlined in the International Labor Organization conventions.
Fairtrade said the research was based on agricultural inputs, working conditions and environmental impacts at 15 Fairtrade plantations and 97 small-scale farmers in Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, and Peru. Sector data looked at the same aspects and were derived from secondary sources and verified and validated by local experts.
According to the release, the study concludes that the banana sector can dramatically improve sustainability by reducing external costs.
Last year, Fairtrade America released Globescan research showing consumers would reward retailers that stock Fairtrade bananas. Of consumers surveyed, the release said 64% indicated that they would purchase fair trade certified bananas at a differential of 10 cents per pound.
Fairtrade now works with over 22,044 farmers and workers organized into 147 producer groups in 16 countries.
In 2016, banana producer organizations received over $30 million in Fairtrade Premium, an amount over the purchase price that they invest in communities or businesses according to their priorities.
Fairtrade reports that:
- About 59% of Fairtrade bananas sold were also certified organic.
- 91% of workers in Colombia have seen household assets increase by an average of 64% since their plantation became Fairtrade certified.
- Three-quarters of farmer cooperative members in Ecuador said their income and well-being had improved in the last three years.
- Small-scale farmers in Colombia reported an average 34% increase in income due to their affiliation with Fairtrade certified organizations.
