Across the Colombian Caribbean, banana growers are watching a harvest slip away under the weight of a super El Niño, a cycle of climate disruption that is now reaching into the economic foundations of the trade. Exports fell sharply through the summer and early autumn, and the people who grow the fruit, from owners to field workers, find themselves absorbing losses they did little to create. Beneath the numbers lies an older imbalance, in which shelf prices that have barely moved in four decades leave little room for the costs of a warming world. The question now is whether the distance betwee
Latin American banana growers demand fairer pay as super El Niño tightens grip on production
Farm workers face reduced wages and job risk as extreme weather cuts production, with worker health also expected to be affected.
Across the Colombian Caribbean, banana growers are watching a harvest slip away under the weight of a super El Niño, a cycle of climate disruption that is now reaching into the economic foundations of the trade. Exports fell sharply through the summer and early autumn, and the people who grow the fruit, from owners to field workers, find themselves absorbing losses they did little to create. Beneath the numbers lies an older imbalance, in which shelf prices that have barely moved in four decades leave little room for the costs of a warming world. The question now is whether the distance between what the fruit costs to grow and what it fetches can be closed before the next storm arrives.
In the Colombian Caribbean, this autumn has brought numbers that banana growers cannot ignore. Between July and September, exports from the region fell 32% to $122m, according to the growers' association for Magdalena and La Guajira. September was the hardest month, with shipments down 42% on a year earlier and earnings falling from $70m to $40m.
Growers and the ethical trade body Fairtrade blame this year's super El Niño. Strong winds are hitting Colombia, one of the UK's largest suppliers, while heavy rain is affecting Peru and Ecuador and drought is forecast for the Dominican Republic. Fairtrade's research on earlier El Niño cycles shows what is at stake: productivity fell 13% in the Dominican Republic and 22% in Ecuador in the previous cycle, and the 1983 event cut Ecuadorian exports by 36%.
For the workers, the stakes are personal. Ever Antonio Flores Muños, who works at a Colombian producer, describes a climate that has grown hotter and more violent over the past decade, with floods and wind destroying crops. He expects wages to fall and fears for his colleagues' health.
The pricing backdrop makes the situation harder. UK supermarket banana prices have barely moved in almost 40 years, even as costs have climbed, and research cited by Fairtrade found that two-thirds of suppliers were paid too little to cover production in 2026. Fairtrade wants UK legislation against unfair trading practices, such as late payments and contracts that push risk down the chain, so producers can invest in resilience. Some retailers already source only Fairtrade bananas, but the organisation says more is needed. What comes next depends on whether lawmakers act and whether buyers agree to pay more as the El Niño's effects intensify.
In the Colombian Caribbean, the banana trade has posted numbers this autumn that growers cannot ignore. Between July and September, exports from the region fell 32% to $122m (£91m), according to the Association of Banana Growers of Magdalena and La Guajira, as reported by the trade publication Fruitnet. September alone was worse: shipments were down 42% on the same month a year earlier, and earnings dropped from $70m to $40m, close to half.
The cause, growers and the ethical trade body Fairtrade Foundation say, is this year's super El Niño. High winds are hitting parts of Colombia, one of the biggest suppliers to the UK market, and heavy rain is affecting Peru and Ecuador. In the Dominican Republic, farmers are expected to face drought, with forecasts of drier and warmer than usual conditions. Droughts are also predicted in some Colombian regions this year.
Fairtrade's research on the previous El Niño cycle shows what is at stake. Across its farmers and workers, productivity fell 13% in the Dominican Republic, 22% in Ecuador and 6% in Peru compared with the year before. Going further back, the 1983 El Niño, one of the strongest on record, affected 15% of the planted banana area in Ecuador and cut exports by 36%. Dr Carley-Jane Stanton, a climate and environment lead at Fairtrade, expects heavier rain and stronger winds this time, and says the impacts for producers should be more severe than in the 2023-24 cycle.
The Colombian growers' association says currency problems have compounded the loss of output and export income, which it describes as undermining the economic sustainability of the industry. It is asking international markets to set commercial conditions that recognise actual production costs.
For workers, the stakes are personal. Ever Antonio Flores Muños, who works at the Agrosiete banana producer in Colombia, told Fairtrade the climate has changed a great deal over the past decade, becoming much hotter and more intense, with flooding and strong winds causing losses in some places. He expects everyone, workers and colleagues alike, to be at great risk, and says wages will fall. Fairtrade also expects worker health to suffer from more extreme weather.
The pricing backdrop is hard. Supermarket banana prices in the UK have stayed essentially unchanged for almost 40 years, even as fertiliser, fuel and labour costs have risen. Research by the Ethical Trading Initiative found that prices paid to suppliers in 2026 did not cover basic production costs for 66.7% of them. Caoimhe Buckley, chief corporate affairs officer at the large supplier Fyffes, said the sector's long-term sustainability cannot be separated from purchasing practices, and that shelf prices should reflect labour, decent wages, environmental management, human-rights due diligence and the investment needed to adapt to climate change.
Fairtrade wants UK legislation to tackle unfair trading practices, including low or late payments to farmers and contracts that push risk down the supply chain. The aim is to free producers to invest in resilience against severe weather, and against the greater likelihood of pests and diseases. Sainsbury's, the Co-op and Waitrose have taken voluntary steps by sourcing only Fairtrade bananas, which carry a guaranteed minimum price, but Fairtrade says more work remains. Its chief executive, Eleanor Harrison, said fair prices, climate resilience and decent work go hand in hand.
The longer horizon is sobering. Research for the Inter-American Development Bank, published in 2020, suggested land suitable for banana cultivation could shrink by an average of 61% across Latin America and the Caribbean by 2050. What to watch now is whether UK lawmakers act on unfair trading practices, and whether buyers raise prices as El Niño's effects are expected to intensify.
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