Bananas Capitulo Tres

This past Friday we visited Chiquita Banana. As we traveled down the long lane of banana plantation the first thing we saw was plenty of caution signs warning people not to go into the fields when planes were above. The planes spray toxic chemicals that should not be near humans. However we also noticed that there were houses on the other side of this lane.

When we went inside we watched a video about what Chiquita is doing with their Nature and Community Project. Chiquita works with the Rainforest Alliance and promotes corporate responsibility. They have spent over $20 million to certify their farms in 5 countries. Although we have heard about all of the awful things banana plantations do to the environment and even the workers in the fields, it seems that Chiquita is taking great steps to reduce these risks and make everything as safe as possible. They work hard to maintain good working conditions and have strict rules in order to protect the employess health. Unlike at some other banana farms it is a must for field workers to wear the appropriate garments and masks to protect their skin from the chemicals. Chiquita is aware of the damaging affects a banana plantation has and they try to help the environment when they can. For instance, all of the bananas on the trees are covered in plastic bags until picked. Rather than throw these bags away in inappropriate areas, Chiquita chooses to recycle whatever possible. There seems to be negative things that Chiquita can not really avoid in their production but they are doing more than other major banana producers. With a well-known name like Chiquita that accounts for such a large sector of the banana industry, I am glad they can be a respectable company as well.

We also saw the production line where the bananas are washed and packed for shipping. I was pretty impressed with how fast those people can put stickers on bananas. Then we watched a play put on by the women of Chiquita. The workers in the fields are predominately male but there is a large amount of women that work the production line or within one of three other independent businesses. The play that we watched, The Chiquita Banana Show, was one of these business ventures. The women explained the Chiquita history as well as protocol in the fields by acting everything out and including audience intereaction. This was similar to the show we saw at Cafe Britt, but a bit less high-tech.

Another business that the women run is homemade products that they sell in a small gift shop. They dehydrate fruit, make paper products with bananas, and create bowls, bags, and placemats from newspapers. These items are really cool looking and I have to admit that I am pretty excited about my new newspaper bowl. The women of Chiquita also made a pretty good lunch for us. It was a pretty traditional Costa Rican lunch but it ended with some of the best warm banana bread that I have ever had. So along with growing and selling bananas Chiquita is also promoting business skills and helping the surrounding Costa Rican area thrive.

I love bananas and I do not believe that I have ever purchased anything but Chiquita bananas. When I intitially heard how awful bananas were to the environment I expected to visit Chiquita and hear a lot of hype and essentially fibs about how they do good for the environment not hurt it. Instead what I found was a genuine corporate company that seems to be doing what they can while providing good products and making a profit. Though I think organic bananas may be a better option all-around in comparison to traditional growing with harsh chemicals, I also think that Chiquita is still a solid company and is worth by money.