Long travel
Bananas are harvested when they are green and are on their way to Europe in shipping containers for up to 5 weeks – they are packed airtight to prevent them from ripening
200 Ripeners
From the ports of Antwerp and Rotterdam, the goods are transported by freight forwarder to around 200 ripening plants in Europe, which then distribute the goods to the supermarkets. Almost every third banana sold in Austria bears a Fairtrade seal. At Spar, the rate is even 40 percent
Fairtrade
Next to coffee and cocoa, the banana is the most important Fairtrade-certified product of all. Bananas sold in Austria mostly come from Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica or the Dominican Republic. Fairtrade farming families or employees of Fairtrade plantations should be treated and remunerated better – more fairly – than in the conventional sector. “It’s about fair prices and income, that you can live from the cultivation,” says Fairtrade Austria Managing Director Hartwig Kirner.
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