Banana cultivation in itself is a very interesting process. Cultivation requires specific conditions and optimum soils to produce good bananas. The terrain must be flat with deep, well-drained and structured soils. Costa Rica is ideal for banana production because of the volcanic ash deposit in the soils that exist. Also, conditions are ideal because bananas require 10-15 months of no frost and temperatures constantly above 53 degrees F.
The production of bananas consists of four stages: plant growth, fruit protection, harvest, and cleaning, packing and shipping. The plant growth lasts about 6-8 months and consists of the growth of a stem with a large bud. Once the stem has arrived, the fruit protection begins. The fruit is protected by removing damaging leaves and bagging the fruit to prevent sun and insect damage. At this point, colored ribbons are tied to the bags to mark the fruits scheduled harvest. At this point, fruits are supported by twine to prevent wind damage. Also, this is the stage where pesticides and other chemicals are applied. When the bananas are matured, they are cut from the vine and placed in water tanks to be cleaned. Once cleaned, they are cut into bunches and packaged to be shipped. Bananas usually arrive on refrigerated trucks and shipped within 24 hours. The fruit generally arrives are supermarkets within 3-11 days of harvesting.
I had no idea of the process that brought this wonderful fruit to my grocery store in Ohio. Later in our trip, we are going to visit Chiquita and another organic banana plantation. I'm looking forward to seeing the process in real life.
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