Bananas In General and In CR

Large scale banana production has been conducted in Central America since the beginning of the 20th century. Bananas originated in the tropical regions of Asia. They were introduced to the Caribbean Islands during the period of Spanish colonization. The banana industry is almost entirely controlled by three large fruit companies: Chiquita, Dole, and Del Monte. Most of the bananas produced in Central America are exported to industrialized countries.
Banana plantations have been developed primarily along the Caribbean Coast of Central America where the high temperature, rainfall, and rich alluvial soil are suitable for the large scale production of this tropical fruit. High rainfall makes crop irrigation unnecessary, but necessitates the installation of drainage canals to prevent flooding.
Unlike coffee, bananas are commonly used in CR. Bananas are fried, marinated, and eaten as desserts. There are bananas at every meal here in Costa Rica. I’m not really certain who the number one seller of bananas to ticos is. I imagine it is one of the three largest fruit companies: Chiquita, Dole, and Del Monte. I guess we’ll see when we visit the banana plantations this weekend.