Farmers in the south yesterday called for the central government to continue buying bananas in an effort to alleviate the impact of a glut that has sent market prices into a tailspin.
Tsai Ho-shun (蔡和順), head of the agriculture division of Chiayi County’s Meishan Township (梅山) office, said the central government should assign more funds to purchasing bananas to reduce the impact on banana farmers in the village, which is one of Taiwan’s major banana growing areas.
Farmers have seen prices plummet because of oversupply caused by warm weather. Retail prices have fallen to below NT$10 per jin, a weight measurement equal to 0.6kg, down sharply from a peak of more than NT$34 in April, Tsai said.
Tsai said banana prices were likely to fall further without increased support from the government, and the farmers would suffer even more.
“We hope the government will keep buying bananas,” Tsai said. “That would stabilize banana prices and assuage farmers. We need the government’s help.”
Since mid-May, the Agriculture and Food Agency has paid NT$5 per kilogram for 2,238 tonnes of bananas that were not suitable to be sold on the market. The amount is close to the annual acquisition goal of 3,000 tonnes set by the government in May.
The bananas acquired by the government will be processed into banana chips or other snacks.
Tsai said Meishan Township has been granted a quota of 500 tonnes under the acquisition program and that 300 tonnes had already been purchased by the government.
“The 500 tonnes allocated is not nearly enough. The government should raise its budget and acquire more,” Tsai said, adding that his village has 100 hectares of banana farms, enough to produce 3,000 tonnes a year.
Liu Hong-wen (劉宏文), head of the Meishan Village office, said banana farmers now face having tonnes of unsold bananas and possible bankruptcy.
The Agriculture and Food Agency said the government would try to help banana farmers.
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