What’s not to love about bananas? They’re delicious, packed with nutrients, and they help fuel the economies of several tropical countries—like Costa Rica, one of the world’s top banana exporters.
But there’s a dark side to this sunny fruit: The industry has a long, ugly history of deforestation, worker abuse, water pollution, and reckless pesticide use. That’s why, soon after forming in 1987 to fight forest destruction, the Rainforest Alliance set its sights on improving the banana sector, too. Since we were headquartered in Costa Rica at the time, that’s where we started our efforts—and in 1992, Platanera Río Sixaola became one of the first farms in the world to win Rainforest Alliance certification.
A model banana farm on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast
Since achieving certification in 1992, Platanera Río Sixaola has continually gone above and beyond our sustainability requirements, even becoming 100 percent carbon neutral.
Like many banana farms in Costa Rica, Platanera Río Sixaola sits in a low-lying area that’s vulnerable to flooding—an ever-increasing threat due to climate change. But here at Platanera Río Sixaola, lush ground cover protects fertile soils, and native trees line the banks of local streams, helping prevent waterways from overflowing into the farm during heavy downpours. Platanera Río Sixaola has also become a refuge for wild animals, which frequently appear on cameras set up to monitor their populations. Impressively, the farm has achieved all this while increasing its banana production—and without expanding its geographic footprint.
But it’s not all about protecting nature at Sixaola: Worker well-being is just as important. “We receive a lot of benefits here,” said Rafael Rivas, an employee who coordinates a worker-led committee. These benefits include housing, support for local schools, paid vacation time, and maternity leave. “We could work on other farms, but they don’t offer the same opportunities.”
Growing a greener banana in Costa Rica
Finca Esmeralda (“emerald farm”) is green in every sense of the word—so green, in fact, that it had no problem meeting the rigorous requirements of our updated standard in 2020, becoming the first banana farm to do so.
While many tropical farms rely heavily on harsh pesticides that endanger the health of workers, communities, and wildlife, Finca Esmeralda uses nature as an ally: The farm’s rich biodiversity and well-nourished soil make it harder for diseases to thrive. In cases where pesticides are the only way to stop total crop destruction, Finca Esmeralda—like all certified farms—provides workers with extensive safety training, protective gear, and washing stations.
As part of achieving its updated certification, Finca Esmeralda also strengthened the rights and well-being of women on the farm. The company helped its workers understand their breastfeeding and pregnancy rights; made sure that the farm’s facilities offered privacy, sanitation, and refrigeration for breast milk; and encouraged their employees to use these spaces as needed.
Improving conditions for migrant workers on Costa Rica’s banana farms
About 70 percent of Costa Rica’s seasonal banana and pineapple workers are migrants who’ve crossed into the country from Nicaragua. Their precarious status makes them a target for exploitative practices, such as exorbitant recruiter fees, miscalculated wages, and excessive work hours. We are partnering with governments and local communities in Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, and Mexico to better protect these migrant workers.
In Costa Rica, we are providing training to thousands of workers on certified and non-certified banana farms as well as engaging them via labor providers in the region. We are piloting tools to help farms and cooperatives prevent, identify, and take action on recruitment-related risks and comply with existing labor laws. We also offer training to help certified farms meet our updated agriculture standard.
A shared responsibility for change
The Rainforest Alliance is proud of the progress we’ve made in Costa Rica’s banana sector, but we recognize that more needs to be done. To make the banana industry truly sustainable, everyone—including buyers, retailers, and governments—must get on board. You can make a difference, too, by looking for our little green frog next time you’re at the supermarket.
