Fyffes North America CEO Juan Alarcon is sounding the alarm on a banana supply chain that's holding together — but just barely. Weather volatility across Central and South America, including the shifting effects of El Niño and La Niña, is creating inconsistent production conditions, increasing disease pressure from Black Sigatoka, and adding cost at every step from farm to shelf. At origin, growers are paying more for fertilizer, fumigation, plastics, and inland transportation. In the U.S., limited truck drivers and high fuel costs are making reliable delivery harder.
The core tension is that bananas remain one of retail's most price-sensitive staples, but the cost to produce and deliver them keeps rising. Retail pricing hasn't kept pace with supply chain cost inflation, which Alarcon says is putting the long-term sustainability of the category at risk.
For buyers and category managers, bananas are a category where the value expectation is deeply embedded — and very hard to reset. Watch for increased pressure from suppliers to adjust pricing or contract terms, particularly if weather disruptions in Guatemala, Honduras, Ecuador, or Costa Rica intensify through the El Niño cycle extending into mid-2027.