DOle Banana Project

| by Dr U. Pethiyagoda

(September 19, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Developments regarding the above have received several adverse responses in the press. Notable among them, which aptly summarise the indignation caused, are by Saradha Mohan Kumar in "The Sunday Times" of 22 August, quoting Mr Ravindra Kariyawasam, National Coordinator of the Centre for Environmental Studies, and the article by Tisaranee Gunasekera in the "Sunday Leader" of 11 September as also several in "The Island". It is impossible to deny the legitimacy of their concerns. The grounds of unwarranted secrecy, (in fact, many became aware when neatly presented bananas began to appear on Supermarket shelves), infringement of legal requirements, side-stepping of relevant Institutions , violation of sanctuaries, virgin forests and temple lands are certainly dangerous and irresponsible actions. 

The over-riding opposite argument, almost equally compelling, would be that investment by an important multinational (FDI) is commercially very attractive to the country. Also,that the need to act swiftly and decisively, in order not to miss such a good opportunity, warrants actions dictated by special circumstances. The proven lethargy and inefficiencies of State sector Institutions may provide some justification for the short cuts taken. This may be why certain local companies with good track records have chosen to become associated.

Since these matters may become a subject of litigation, they may be set aside for the present . However, certain other facts would be of interest to the discerning reader. 

Banana is the largest fruit crop in World commerce, both in tonnage and value.It surpasses citrus, pineapple and apples. Four giant multinationals, with Dole as the leader control some 85 % of World Banana trade. The Dole Company is also the largest fresh fruit producer and accounts for a quarter of the World market for bananas The annual value of fresh fruit exports by Dole is reported to be about 4.76 Billion US Dollars.

The massive value to the companies, of export bananas have led to what is known as "the Banana War". Understandably, the ethics and practices of the giants have come under critical and justifiable scrutiny, not least among rival producers. The record is particularly black in respect of labour exploitation, environmental harm, social disturbance and interference in the politics of countries of presence. Dole is no exception! One should be mindful that the phrase "banana republic" often conjures up pictures of exploitation, dictatorships, corruption and popular misery. Along with the great advantages arising from links with giants, there are also attendant perils.

There are well known and self-evident hazards of large scale monoculture export crops.Against this, the advantages of introducing a product with a proven foreign demand, superior technology and a step in diversifying our export agriculture are obvious advantages to Sri Lanka.

Prudence would recommend a careful and informed assessment of the pros and cons. A primary question would be, what are the reasons for the apparently new found interest in our country for growing bananas by a multinational?

A look at the recent history of commercial banana cultivation would be instructive.A variety of banana suitable for the export trade must have certain recognised attributes. Prior to the 1960’s, the variety of choice on almost all commercial plantations was one called Gros Michel. The major centres of production were the Central and South American, South East Asian and Northern Australian regions. Bananas however grow in a large number of Tropical countries but mainly satisfy important local needs (as in Sri Lanka) Particularly since the early 1960’s, plantations in South East Asia were devastated by a disease called "Panama Disease" or "Fusarium Wilt". It is caused by a fungus Fusarium oxysporum ssp Cubense which invades the roots and rapidly causes death of the plant and because of its ready dissemination through infected suckers, contaminated implements and irrigation water, dramatically destroyed entire plantations. It was not amenable to control and the feasible choices were to use resistant cultivars or move to uninfected areas. Fortunately, at this time, a resistant cultivar, called Cavendish, with fruit qualities similar to the susceptible one, was available as a swift replacement. Unfortunately, the comfort was short-lived, the fungus developing a new fungal strain (called Tropical Race 4) which is highly infective. It has already destroyed plantations in Asia (Malaysia and Indonesia) and has made its appearance in Northern Australia. Although not yet into South and Central America, this is considered only as a matter of time. This has led the large players in the banana trade, to whom the crop is of enormous importance, to look for new areas of cultivation as a suitable resistant variety is not available this time round.

The danger to us is that should the fungus take hold, most local varieties will also be susceptible - judging from experiences elsewhere. It is also conceivable on the other hand, that local varieties already harbour fungal strains that would be devastating to the new introduction Cavendish. This could be one reason why Dole prefers to move into areas in the island with no existing widespread banana cultivation. This naturally involves intrusion into reserve or other sensitive areas.

Genetically uniform and monocrop cultivations, are for well known reasons, extremely hazardous in the event of disease outbreaks. Commercial banana plantations are raised from tissue-cultured progeny. While these initially (in the flasks), are almost certainly sterile, they could be infected during the period of "field hardening" or once installed in their final site. A virulent fungal strain will be a dramatic disaster.

Even if local varieties possess desirable resistant traits, it is very possible that a large commercial enterprise, by offering attractive incentives, could wean cultivators into a monoculture system. Older readers may recall how local varieties like "Suwandel" have all but disappeared.

Commercial banana plantations attract massive use of hazardous pesticides, which are often aerially sprayed. The potential dangers to humans, wild life, livestock and other crops are high.

Some time ago, there was a proposal to introduce commercial plantations of the "Kew" (kos annasi) variety of pineapple (possibly on account of its barrel shape for ease of canning). Had this happened, we may have lost for ever the universally favoured "Mauritius" (Murusi) form as growers would have been tempted to change by a higher price on offer.

As far as Sri Lanka is concerned, vigilance to avoid ecological damage, especially by large scale use of agrochemicals and the extinction of indigenous varieties (ie banana diversity) should be actively and continuously exercised.

Application of due caution and an urging of informed judgment must not be misunderstood for troublesome meddling or sabotage. On the other hand, it would be a dereliction of duty, if trained scientists do not air their concerns in a venture of this magnitude. "Prophets of doom," or "voices of caution" - the choice is with those who are charged with the powers of decision.