ba-na-na-naaaaa

I have a banana addiction. I used to have a banana a day and I will put a banana in every meal: breakfast (with cereal/oatmeal), lunch (peanut-butter, banana, honey sandwiches are my favorite), dinner (plátanos, anyone?), and dessert (perfect addition to vanilla pudding!)

During our “Faith & Practice” Seminar at LASP, we were divided into groups of 7 or 8 and were asked to come together to discuss how we as Americans should engage with Latin America. Many of the groups, including my own, focused on consumerism since we consume many products from Latin America…and what better topic to pick for me than bananas, a fruit I (obviously) love!

This blog post isn’t meant for me to coerce you into following my new convictions about banana consumption, but rather a way for me to tell you a little bit about what I learned about bananas while I was in Latin America…and why those lessons have challenged me to think differently about my banana consumption and purchases.

[fun fact: bananas do not grow on trees! instead we call them a plant and they grow in group of three. as you can see above, there are three generations for this banana plant - L to R: grandchild, child, and grandparent :)]

Some fast facts from the USDA Economic Research Service

**in 2007, the united states imported 7.908 billion pounds of bananas

**Bananas claim over 50% of the volume of fresh fruit imports

-Bananas rank no. 1 in US per capita fresh fruit consumption (followed by apples & oranges)

-Bananas are imported primarily from Guatemala, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Colombia, and Honduras

Unfortunately, banana production and trade has not always been carried out in an ethical and just manner. While I was at my internship, I read two books on Latin American History/Politics, recommended by one of my professors.

Here is an excerpt that draws attention to some of the harmful affects of the banana industry in the early twentieth century:

"In 1899, [the Boston Fruit Company and Tropical Trading & Transport Company] merged to form a singular enterprise: UFCO (United Fruit Company). Here began a remarkable chapter in the history of U.S. investment, penetration, and control in Central America. UFCO established a virtual monopoly on the production and distribution of bananas"

--Modern Latin America 6 ed. (Skidmore & Smith)

I saw injustice within the banana industry first hand when our group traveled to visit a protest site of former banana workers and they told us their story. At this site, men, women, and their families (approximately 500 of the 7,000 affected by the chemical during a period of time) live under tarps to protest against the banana companies which used pesticides resulting in sickness for many workers. These workers have different forms of cancer and other ailments such as blindness because of the pesticides used on the bananas. Unfortunately, the multi-national corporations involved have yet to pay for the damages they caused and the former workers continue to live at this site outside of the government offices in Managua (the capital city of Nicaragua). The consequences of these pesticides had an enormously detrimental affect on many workers and I do not believe that this story is the only one among other Latin American countries who are involved in the banana industry.

[banana plantation in limón, costa rica moving bananas from the land to be prepared for export. notice the blue bags that are covering them]

Besides workers abuses, many banana plantations are not environmentally friendly because of the bags they use to cover the bananas as they are growing. We visited a few banana plantations in Costa Rica, and you will see blue bags covering many of the growing banana bunches and the amount of these disposed for this huge industry is not good for a planet in need of lowering waste! Now many banana plantations are using recyclable or eco-friendly bags, but in the past this hasn’t been the case.

So…what do we do? There are some awesome fair-exchange/fair-trade banana companies such as equal exchange (www.beyondthepeel.com) and EARTH Bananas, a banana plantation in Costa Rica which sells their bananas in Whole Foods! Even if you don't shop at Whole Foods, you should check them out because it's a really cool business that they are operating. I wish there were fair trade/equal exchange bananas in all grocery stores, but this has yet to happen.

[bananas are rinsed and sorted and then put in boxes, then shipped to us!]

Eating locally has become a bigger theme for our consumption of foods. Eating locally is good for a number of reasons (you should definitely watch Food Inc. to learn more about them!!), but one of them is the lessened environmental impact because of the oil and other resources used to get products across the oceans and continents. Since most of the US’s terrain isn’t very good for growing bananas, it is hard to “buy locally,” so I think the second best option is to buy less.

My local grocery store doesn't sell fair exchange or EARTH bananas so I am trying to only buy organic bananas and eat less of them in general (my next step should be talking to my grocery store about getting equal exchange bananas but i haven't gotten up the courage to do that yet!). Unfortunately organic does not mean "just & ethical", but at least it is better for the environment and not using pesticides is also eliminating the possibility of workers becoming sick from pesticide use. I wish there was a simple answer to eating and buying ethically produced products or that there was one website that would sum it all up and tell me where to shop and where not to shop. But I believe that the exercise of trying to be informed and make good consumer choices is a good practice and something that needs to become a bigger part of my life.

Let me know if you have any thoughts on bananas – I would love to hear them! So far it has been a little difficult eating less of one of my favorite fruits, but thankfully there are many other yummy fruits to compensate :)

[sweet] sixteen

[our attempt at touching the golden gate...not so successful.

but in any case, isn't she cute?!?!]

my baby sister turned 16 this past sunday.

crazy.

the only thing i remember about her being born was that when my dad took kels and i to the hospital to meet her and see my mom, my dad accidentally ran over my toe when he was opening the door. therefore, i received more attention than the new baby or my mom as nurses helped me and my wound :)

there are many special things about libby. she is kind, loving, sensitive, caring, funny, has a huge smile & heart, and has a beautiful voice, among many others. i was really bummed to have missed her debut in her high school's production of "Hello Dolly!", but got to see her perform a few times since i've been home and it is SO fun to see her up on stage. she has also been helping leading worship for youth group which is exciting.

i thought about libby a lot while i was in central america because there were panaderias, or little bread stores, on many corners throughout the towns. libby LOVES bread and i thought she would be in heaven with all the different kinds of sweet breads that abounded every where i went. i told this to my host family and since i've talked to them, they keep telling me how they think about libby and want her to visit them and enjoy the panaderias :)

i love this girl a whole bunch and am so blessed to be able to be apart of her 16th birthday celebration!

happy birthday libs!! i love you dearly and am so proud of you!!

parents

i learned so much from my parents while i was in latin america. i saw hospitality, generosity, patience, and love flow from their hearts in the ways they interacted with me. they were servants in the ways they fed me, provided shelter for me, and also provided conversation and comfort as i lived miles away from the comforts of my own "home". the majority of my time abroad was spent with my san jose family, but i also got to live with two other families, in nicaragua and at my internship. i believe that these people are gutsy -- i mean, really, opening their heart & home to an exchange student you've never met nor seen before? i wish i could say i would jump at the opportunity, but i think it would take a little more encouragement than that. it was a privilege to live with them throughout the semester and i treasure my conversations and experiences with them.

[san jose]

[nicaragua]

[internship]

[santa barbara parents, or as i like to call them: the 'rents]

i was so blessed by the parents i had while i was in latin america for four months, but that blessing pales in comparison to the blessing of my birth parents -- whose hospitality, love, generosity, patience, and faithfulness have continued for 21 years (and counting :)). they were a rock during my semester and i don't think i could have made it through the ups and downs of living in a foreign country without them.

i'm thankful for the blessing of parents: of their wisdom, the ways i observe how they live in love, how they press on through the challenges of life, and how they open their arms to you just the way you are.