Banana selling prices in St. Petersburg were USD21.50-22.60 per box CIF according to brand, quality, and packing. Nearly 1.6 million boxes were discharged in week 6, and around 1.89 million are expected for week 7. According to industry sources, there were around 300 FEUs with bananas at the St Petersburg port awaiting delivery by Friday, and more might pile up in the coming days due to the ban on 5 Ecuadorian banana exporting companies. Prices might increase due to the lower volumes of bananas available in the retail system. Prices in the Mediterranean for Ecuadorian bananas, depending on brand, volume, region, and packing, were USD 16.00-18.00 per box CIF. They were slightly higher in Libya, with Ecuadorian bananas sold at USD 17.00-18.00 per box  CIF and bananas from Central America at around USD 16.00 per box CIF. Prices in the Mersin Free Zone were around USD 16.50-17.50 per box for the re-exported bananas of Ecuadorian origin.

According to the Russian news agency Interfax, the Far Eastern Shipping Company (FESCO), the Vladivostok-based shipping and logistics company, one of the largest in the Russian Federation offers Russian importers to diversify their import sources after the ban imposed on five exporting companies from the Andinian country Andrei Severilov, the company’s chairman, informed reporters that they had communicated their readiness to the Russian Agriculture Ministry and all major retail chains.

The National Assembly of Ecuador, the country's unicameral legislature, on February 7 ratified a free trade agreement between the Andean nation and China. "Promoting the expansion and diversification of trade between Ecuador and China, eliminating trade barriers and facilitating the cross-border circulation of goods are the goals of the free trade agreement approved by the National Assembly," the legislature said in a statement.

Standard Fruit Company, a subsidiary of Dole, has announced the closure of two of its banana farms, leading to the dismissal of 111 employees. The company attributes this decision to the exchange rate policy, which it claims is adversely affecting the competitiveness of its operations. Juan Carlos Rojas, the Legal Director of the company, said that the closure of the Roxana and Parismina farms, both situated in Guápiles, within the canton of Pococí.

AP Moller-Maersk, the Danish shipping and logistics conglomerate, has set a new industry precedent by validating its decarbonisation targets. These targets align with the Paris Agreement’s objective to limit the global average temperature increase to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. The company’s goals have been verified by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), a globally recognized authority for assessing corporate climate targets.

Sainsbury’s, the supermarket giant, has taken a pioneering step in the industry by investing in living wages for banana workers. This move comes three years ahead of a broader industry commitment, demonstrating Sainsbury’s proactive approach to fair trade. In the previous year, Sainsbury’s, along with nine other UK retailers, pledged to bridge the pay gap for workers on large banana plantations.

Global banana marketers (Banasan) has reached an achievement by receiving the Certification of Excellence in Sustainability granted by (CHEP), marking a fundamental step in its environmental commitment and responsibility. It should be noted that this award certifies the company's efforts with its suppliers, consolidating its position as a benchmark in promoting the circular economy, a model of production and consumption that involves sharing, reusing, renewing, and recycling materials and products.

Over 3 million containers were mobilized in the Port Terminal of Guayaquil (TPG) in the last six years, with an annual average of 500,000 TEUs. It was indicated by the entity in the latest figures after the closing of 2023. According to Luis Enrique Navas, its general manager, in that year, the transfer of containers registered a significant increase, from 487,904 containers in 2022 to 507,223 in 2023.

Chiquita Guatemala S.A. (Chiquita) has received the first two of three Konecranes reachstackers for its Terminal Ferroviaria in Puerto Barrios with one more scheduled for delivery in 2024. The first two reachstackers, a Konecranes SMV 4632 TC5 and a Konecranes SMV 4632 TC6H were received in Q3 2023. The third one, currently on its way, is a Konecranes Liftace 4532 TCE5.

Colombian banana producers, headed by the Association of Colombian Banana Growers (Augura) and the Association of Banana Growers of Magdalena and La Guajira, were present in Berlin, Germany, at the Fruit Logistica fair seeking joint solutions to address the price crisis facing the sector. A few days ago, the banana guilds warned about the possibility of a drop in the price paid per box exported to the European Union, as supermarkets in this area allegedly requested a reduction of 1.30 euros.

With an investment of approximately $ 90,000, the Agency for Regulation and Phytosanitary and Zoosanitary Control (Agrocalidad) upgraded the rapid diagnostic laboratory (LDR) of Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, which will benefit more than 50,000 producers in the area that includes the provinces of Santo Domingo, Esmeraldas, Manabí, El Oro and Los Ríos. With this repowering, the laboratory presents an annual analytical capacity for this year of 7,800 samples, with an increase of 3,260 samples in 2023, which means an increase of 42% in the attention of the LDR Santo Domingo.

After the sanctions imposed by the Russian government against five Ecuadorian banana exporters for the alleged presence of the humpback fly, Patricio Almeida, director of the Agency for Phytosanitary and Animal Health Regulation and Control (Agrocalidad) of Ecuador, said that the humpback fly is not an agricultural pest of bananas, as denounced by the Federal Veterinary Control Service in Moscow.

Claiming to have found specimens of the humpback fly and using this sanitary excuse, the Kremlin blocked the entry of the Ecuadorian flagship product, the bananas and carnations, days before Valentine's Day. Ecuador is preparing a response to the measures that Russia has applied by suspending five Ecuadorian banana exporters and restricting the entry of carnations from the Latin American country.

The Platform for a Fair and Authentic Price of Bananas has organized an act of protest to call for "an end to the massive 'pica' of the fruit that they claim reached 28,000 tonnes destroyed in 2023, in addition to "drawing attention to the ruin of producers due to their low income". On February 6, the platform called for the elimination of the "old practice" of the "pica" imposed by the Association of Banana Producer Organisations of the Canary Islands (ASPROCAN)

The team at Chiquita is rolling out its latest campaign, Pop by Nature, fusing art and nature in a unique way to celebrate the brand. Teaming up with acclaimed artist and Founder of the Happy Art Movement, Romero Britto, Chiquita is driving brand awareness while celebrating the beauty and power of art across the globe. Tina Varjabedian, Head of Global Communications, Chiquita “Chiquita is thrilled to once again be teaming up with Romero Britto, an artist whose vibrant and optimistic pop art mirrors the joyful spirit of our brand,”