Organic Peruvian banana puree on its way to the European market

National producers seek to introduce this product for babies and children, which has high international demand.

Exquisite Peruvian products! The organic banana is a product in great demand in the world for being an excellent food alternative and for the high trend in the consumption of products free of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. For our country, this product represents a major economic livelihood, especially for small producers on the northern coast.

For the last ten years, Peru has been among the main exporters of this fruit, seeking leadership alongside Ecuador, Costa Rica and the Philippines. In order to increase the presence of Peruvian organic bananas abroad, PROMPERU, through the Macro-regional Office of Piura and the Commercial Offices Abroad (OCEX) carried out a series of activities in support of banana producers, together with the Swiss Cooperation and the CEDEPAS Norte NGO.

In this context, local producers were supported at the German fair Fruit Logistica, as well as in virtual meetings with buyers from France, Switzerland, Sweden, Saudi Arabia, the Netherlands and Germany. A commercial tour of Europe also allowed producers to gain a better understanding of food consumption trends.

In this way, the possibilities for the Peruvian fruit in the presentation of puree for children could be tested. To achieve this, agricultural cooperatives APPBOSA, Usuarios Rio y Valle, and APBOSMAM formed the Nor Chira Cooperative to produce this promising product for the European market.

In Peru, there are more than 40 organizations of small banana producers that hope to join the newly formed Nor Chira Cooperative to achieve economies of scale and meet international demand for the benefit of northern Peru's producers.

Important fact:

• Piura is the region's largest producer of fresh organic bananas, accounting for 60% of the national production, with 9,927 hectares out of the 16,500 certified hectares across the country. Tumbes, Lambayeque, and La Libertad follow to a lesser extent.

Thumbnail credits: Yayo López / PROMPERÚ