Plantation workers in developing countries will suffer as a result of banana price cuts, charities warned today. They claim supermarket reductions mark a major setback in efforts to improve life for poverty-stricken labourers.
Campaigners fear other supermarkets will follow Asda and Morrisons, which slashed banana prices last week.
Jenny Ricks, ActionAid campaigner, said: "Plantations can't live up to retailers' demands for decent working conditions if they hammer down prices like this."
According to ActionAid, there are no guarantees that retailers will absorb the cost of the price cuts in the long term and in previous price reductions workers ultimately paid the price.
British shoppers now spend more than half a billion pounds annually on bananas with bananas imported to Britain mainly coming from countries in South America and west Africa. According to ActionAid, for every £1 UK shoppers spend on bananas, around 2.5p will go to workers on plantations in Costa Rica.
An Asda spokesman said: "Rest assured our growers are absolutely not missing out. The price we pay them is not affected."
Source: guardian.co.uk
Publication date: 1/27/2009
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