Peru's Ministry of Agriculture (MINAG) has announced the country's organic banana export values rose 21% to US$16 million in the first three months of 2011.

MINAG reported organic banana export volumes rose by 22.9% compared to the same period in 2010 with 20,000 metric tons (MT), with the Netherlands buying 56.2% of shipments.

The second-largest export destination was the U.S. with 19.7% of volumes, followed by Japan with 10.7% and Belgium with 6.8%.

In a release, MINAG highlighted the rapid growth for the product since 2003 when 18,000MT were sold for the entire year, compared to 2010 when Peru exported 79,000MT of organic bananas.

MINAG said the industry's production has grown at an average rate of 23.2% in that time, while FOB (Freight On Board) prices have risen from US$375/MT in 2003 to US$630?MT in 2010.

Photo: MINAG

www.freshfruitportal.com