Omnipresent in the landscape
You'll never see as many banana trees as in the Canary Islands. Large greenhouses in Tenerife or open-air production as in La Palma, these plantations occupy many plateaus and form part of the rural landscape, bordering roads and motorways, countryside and mountains and stretching all the way to the sea. There is nothing surprising in these landscapes, which reflect first of all the economic importance of bananas (plátanos in Spanish) for the Canary Islands, but also the long history that these islands have maintained with this production. Originally from Southeast Asia, the cultivation of this banana was introduced to the Canary Islands by the Portuguese in the 6th century, after passing through Madagascar, the African continent and then the Mediterranean coast. Its good acclimatization in the Canary Islands will then lead the Spaniards to introduce it to America, after the discovery of the New World.
The beginning of a monoculture
But it was not until the end of the 19th century that its exploitation became a monoculture for the Canary Islands. There are two main reasons for this. Firstly, the adoption of the status of free port in 1852 will allow free trade in this product without tax barriers until the entry into force of the single European market. The second decisive element was the exploitation of this market by English companies that controlled its production and export to the European continent, mainly Great Britain, by setting up all the necessary logistics until 1888, when a regular transport line was set up via a steamboat exporting from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria to the port of London. In the 20th century, entry into the European Union led to new competition for Canary Islands bananas, in particular with the entry into force in 1993 of the CMO for bananas, which put an end to a reserved market with Spain that had been in place since 1972 and which favoured Canary Islands products. However, in accordance with European Union texts, the production of Canary Islands plátanos enjoys a marketing preference within the European market, as do bananas from Madeira, Martinique and the ACP (African, Caribbean and Pacific) countries. In concrete terms, imports into the euro area from other countries in the world are limited to 50%, with the aim of reducing the spread of cheap bananas from Central America, often referred to as "dollar bananas". However, after a period of uncertainty, the Canary Islands market has adapted to this new situation thanks to strong advertising campaigns highlighting the advantages of its product, particularly towards the Spanish market.
First agricultural production in volume
With more than 9,000 hectares of cultivated land in 2018, the Canary Islands banana is the second most important crop in the Canary Islands, after the vine and before the potato, but it remains in first place in terms of production volume, with an annual average often exceeding 400 million kg. It is essentially an export product, since only 8 % of this production is consumed in the islands, the rest being mainly exported to mainland Spain. Although it contributes only 1% to the Canary Islands' GDP, it nevertheless brings in around €115 million a year and provides a living for more than 15 000 people, directly or indirectly, from collection to distribution. It is grown on all the islands with the exception of Fuerteventura, the main banana plantations being located in Tenerife (48 % of production) and in particular in the Orotava Valley, which in the north of Tenerife alone accounts for almost 30 % of the Canary Islands' plantations and whose landscape has been totally altered by these banana plantations. The lower areas of the islands of La Palma and Gran Canaria are also large production areas with percentages of 38% and 17% respectively. It is finally present, but in a residual way, in La Gomera and El Hierro.
Plátano versus banana
Of Asian origin, this banana of the Cavendish variety (Musa acuminata) is also known as the dwarf banana, although its size is only small compared to the African and Caribbean varieties, which are more widely consumed in Europe. Despite its size, the banana tree is not a tree, but simply a rhizome, in other words, nothing less than the largest plant in the world. However, the Canary banana tree is less imposing than its African and Caribbean cousins, but also less demanding of water. It is harvested throughout the year. It is the good growing conditions, a temperature of around 25 °C, planting at less than 300 metres high, good light and ideal soil composition that led to its acclimatisation to the Canary Islands. And since 2013, this banana benefits from a protected geographical designation (PGI) "Plátano de Canarias" which is managed by Asprocan, an association of more than 8,200 independent producers. And it tries to enhance its particularities compared to bananas: sweeter flavour, juicier texture, slower ripening (6 months for plátano compared to 3 months for banana), higher concentration of vitamins A, B2, B6, C, double pectin, higher phosphate and potassium content and more demanding phytosanitary controls. As you will notice during your trip, the Canarian plátano is eaten as a fruit, but it is also used as an ingredient in savoury dishes such as fried banana, banana accompanied by gofio (cereal flour), etc. Sometimes incorporated into the local sangria, plátano can also be enjoyed as a liqueur, with a very sweet taste.
Although it is still very popular in the Canary Islands and Spain, this plátano has been facing a new challenge in recent years, finding new markets. Because since the years 2016 and 2017, its bumper harvests have not always been good news, since about 17 million kg had to be diverted from sale (donations to food banks, livestock feed, etc.) in order to avoid a fall in prices. The markets being explored (Morocco, Switzerland, United Kingdom) are still being explored to a lesser extent. This challenge is made even more difficult by the growing decline in European aid for overseas bananas.
