Phl dislodged as 2nd biggest banana exporter

Is the Philippines still the second largest biggest exporter of bananas in the world? Not anymore, as it was overtaken by Guatemala last year, according to the official tally of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

- JASPER EMMANUEL ARCALAS

The Philippines lost its six-year status as the second biggest exporter of bananas despite reversing its sagging trend in shipments in 2023.

The FAO said Guatemala shipped 2.6 million metric tons of bananas last year, about 300,000 MT more than the 2.3 million MT exported by the Philippines.

Ecuador remained as the world’s top banana exporter with 6.2 million MT of total volume last year.

The last time that the Philippines was the third biggest banana exporter in the world was in 2016 when the local industry reeled from drought and spread of pests.