The Philippines remained the second top exporter of bananas in 2022, according to a market review released by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
The report said the Philippines shipped 2.3 million tons of the fruit, a 4 percent drop from 2.4 million tons in 2021.
The Philippines accounted for 12 percent of total banana exports to the world which stood at 19.1 million tons last year.
FAO said the spread of fusarium wilt tropical race 4 disease as well as the high costs of inputs and fertilizers affected production of small-scale banana farmers in the Philippines.
The disease more commonly known as Panama disease, is caused by the soil-borne fungus Fusarium oxysporum that enters the banana plant’s roots and colonizes the xylem vessels, blocking the flow of water and nutrients which can cause the wilting and death of the crop.
The FAO review said smaller banana producers also struggled to procure agricultural inputs to meet the quality requirements of export markets.
Top exporter Ecuador shipped 5.8 million tons or 30.4 percent of total while three other Latin American countries closely trailed Philippine exports: Costa Rica, 2.1 million tons and Guatemala and Colombia, 2.2 million tons each.
The report said China’s imports of bananas from the Philippines dropped 14 percent in 2022 due to the production difficulties.
FAO said China had previously imported 50 to 75 percent of its total banana imports from the Philippines but the share has plummeted to 40 percent in 2022 of the 1.9 million tons China imported from the country.
