Banana: Global Production Data

Global Banana Production: The Numbers

🍌 Bananas are the world’s fourth-largest agricultural crop by value (after wheat, rice, and maize) and the most consumed fruit globally. Approximately 120 million tonnes are produced annually across more than 150 countries.

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Top 10 Producing Countries (FAO, ~2022 estimates)

Rank	Country	Production (tonnes)	% of World Total	Primary Market
1	India	31,500,000	26.2%	Domestic
2	China	14,500,000	12.1%	Domestic
3	Philippines	9,300,000	7.8%	Export + Domestic
4	Indonesia	8,800,000	7.3%	Domestic
5	Brazil	6,800,000	5.7%	Domestic
6	Ecuador	6,500,000	5.4%	Export-dominant
7	Colombia	3,800,000	3.2%	Export + Domestic
8	Guatemala	3,800,000	3.2%	Export-dominant
9	Tanzania	3,500,000	2.9%	Domestic
10	Angola	3,300,000	2.8%	Domestic
—	World Total	~120,000,000	100%	—

Note: India dominates production by volume but is not a significant exporter — virtually all production is consumed domestically. Ecuador, with ~5% of world production, accounts for approximately 25–30% of all banana exports.

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Export vs. Domestic Production Split

The banana trade has a fundamental asymmetry: most production never leaves the country of origin. Plantains and cooking bananas dominate in tropical-producing regions where they are a dietary staple.

Category	Annual Volume	Notes
Total world production	~120 million tonnes	All varieties
Cavendish (dessert banana)	~56 million tonnes	~47% of total
Plantains/cooking varieties	~45 million tonnes	~38% of total
Other dessert varieties	~19 million tonnes	~16% of total
Total export trade	~20–21 million tonnes	~17% of all production
Cavendish export share	~18 million tonnes	~32% of Cavendish production

The majority of bananas are consumed within 50 miles of where they are grown. The “export banana” industry — the yellow, uniform, 40-week-from-harvest Cavendish in supermarkets worldwide — represents a small fraction of total banana diversity and production.

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Major Export Corridors

Exporting Region	Main Destinations	Key Countries
Latin America	North America, Europe	Ecuador, Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica
Southeast Asia	Japan, China, South Korea, Middle East	Philippines
Africa	EU, Middle East	Ivory Coast, Cameroon

Top 5 exporters by volume:

1. Ecuador — ~6.5M tonnes exported
2. Philippines — ~3.5M tonnes
3. Colombia — ~2.1M tonnes
4. Guatemala — ~2.0M tonnes
5. Costa Rica — ~1.8M tonnes

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The Cavendish Monoculture Risk

🍌 The global export trade is almost entirely dependent on a single cultivar: the Cavendish (specifically Musa acuminata AAA group). This genetic uniformity, while enabling efficient standardized production, creates systemic risk:

• TR4 (Tropical Race 4) of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense has been spreading since the 1990s
• As of 2024, TR4 has been confirmed in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia
• The Cavendish replaced the Gros Michel after Panama disease (TR1) wiped out Gros Michel production in the 1950s
• No TR4-resistant commercial replacement has achieved commercial-scale deployment

Annual losses to banana diseases (Fusarium wilt, Black Sigatoka, Banana Bunchy Top Virus) are estimated at $2.5 billion globally.

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Production Value

The farm-gate value of global banana production is approximately $25–30 billion USD annually, making it one of the highest-value food crops globally. The retail banana market (supermarket shelf value) is substantially larger — a $10 FAO-tracked kilogram at origin becomes a $40–80 kg at retail in developed markets after transport, distribution, and retail margins.

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Related Pages

• Banana Ripening Stages — post-harvest handling and the 7-stage color scale
• Banana Potassium — nutritional data and USDA reference values
• Banana Radioactivity — K-40 content and Banana Equivalent Dose
• Banana Curvature Mathematics — botanical mechanics of banana growth