North American consumer makes organic banana market thrive

The organic banana market continues to experience growth as consumers look for greater clarity in the origins of their fresh produce. Reports continue to show a regular increase in market share occupied by the organic sector. While a number of companies run both conventional and organic lines, Organics Unlimited grows exclusively organic bananas from their farms in Mexico as well as Ecuador. 

Mayra Velazquez de León, CEO of Organics Unlimited said that their crops this year have been unaffected by any of the tropical storms that have impacted other Mexican growing regions this year. She also said that Ecuador bananas will be coming onto the market shortly as supplies decrease out of Mexico over the winter season. "Organics Unlimited’s bananas are grown primarily in Colima and Michoacán, both states in Mexico," she said. "We have also had the good luck of not having been affected by any major storms this year in its banana growing regions, nor do we foresee any impact to the crop in the next few months."

"Organics Unlimited prides itself on providing year-round, fresh, organic bananas," she continued. "Although bananas are available throughout the year, winter months mean cooler temperatures in Mexico, where we grow most of our organic bananas. The cooler temperatures mean bananas stay on the plant longer as they mature. To offset this, Organics Unlimited supplements its supply of bananas from their farms in Ecuador." 

Part of being an organic grower means paying close attention to every step in the journey of the product. With bananas, Velazquez de León said Organics Unlimited take pride in utilizing their experience to ensure their program continues to see good results.

"All our farms in both Mexico and Ecuador are certified organic with the health of the environment, workers and the surrounding communities in mind. Unparalleled quality is one of the strongest selling points for Organics Unlimited. Four generations have honed growing expertise in this family business and growers are trained to follow the strictest protocols in organic farming."

"Furthermore, each of our bananas are inspected by hand and harvested at the time of order. We call this the “just in time method” and the bananas are transported across the border to distributor facilities. This ensures the freshest bananas as they travel short distances via temperature controlled trucks to distributor facilities. We do this as it is best for bananas to ripen as close to market as possible. The distributors that work with Organics Unlimited have ripening rooms as well as the expertise to ensure bananas are delivered to retailers at peak freshness. All of this ensures that they are the freshest, highest quality organic bananas on the market."

Organics Unlimited has been in the process of expanding their acreage over the last 2 years and aim to almost double their footprint by next year. They have done this in response to growing market demand. As well as this, they have addressed some of the challenges faced by organic growers in general, with their experience helping them to continue to ensure a pesticide-free, organic supply. Additionally, the company continues to focus on sustainable development, and has expanded their GROW program. This program sets aside a portion of the revenue from banana sales to put towards community initiatives such as youth education, medical facilities and environmental programs. 

"The organic produce trend has taken off quite a bit in the past few years as more and more consumers focus on healthy eating and wish to support companies that care for both the environment, workers and the community," Velazquez de León said. "The challenges for organic produce growers have usually centered on being able to deliver quality produce without the use of chemical pesticides. At Organics Unlimited however, strict protocols are followed to ensure that produce is 100% organic without the use of chemical pesticides. As we are a family company with years of experience and with expert growers, managers and engineers, the quality of each organic banana is assured, mitigating what may be a challenge for other growers of organic produce."

"Our organic banana volume is expected to increase in the next year due to acreage expansion," she added. "Expansion began in 2015, when farming areas totaled 1,087 acres. This growth will continue through 2018 with the goal of reaching 1,865 acres by year's end. Organics Unlimited has also expanded its GROW by Organics Unlimited to Japan during this time."