INTERNATIONAL BANANA CHARTER

I. PREAMBLE

The history of the international banana trade is one of which few can be proud. Developed countries get cheap fruit, but others--workers, small farmers and the environment in producing countries--pay the price. All involved--consumers, producers, importers, governments, trade unions, farmers' organisations, development organisations, etc.--have a common interest in solving these problems.

In the international banana trade, one hundred years of solitude are coming to an end, and signs of hope are emerging:

• Consumers in developed countries are increasingly concerned, not just about food safety standards, but about the social and environmental conditions under which the food they buy is produced. And they are increasingly willing to pay for this concern. This concern extends to bananas--the world_s favourite tropical fruit--as recent fair trade banana launches have shown and surveys have confirmed.
• There is increasing discussion of the need for minimum social and environmental standards in international trade within the World Trade Organisation and International Labour Organisation. The WTO is formally committed to sustainable development.
• In the banana producing countries, where income from the export of bananas is of great importance, governments, trade unions, farmers_ organisations, and development organisations, are increasingly concerned by the effects of the dramatic restructuring of the trade, and are seeking a way forward which provides stability.
• The major banana companies are increasingly aware that the road of cut-throat price competition has little to offer, even for these companies themselves. There are signs that they are willing to begin discussions with trade unions and to discuss corporate codes of conduct.
• The European Union, the largest and most profitable banana market in the world, is planning major changes in banana import policy to comply with WTO requirements. Because of an import quota, EU consumers pay an estimated $2 billion a year above world market prices. If properly allocated, this would enable the internalisation of social and environmental costs. In practice, however, the producer countries which the regime is supposed to protect receive only a tiny fraction of this; it has not stopped prices paid from falling below the cost of production.

II. TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE BANANA ECONOMY

Social, environmental and economic concerns are brought together in the concept of sustainable development, which holds that social costs must be fairly distributed and environmental costs cannot be passed on to future generations. As currently structured, the international banana trade is unsustainable. It provides cheap fruit at the cost of poor social and labour conditions and environmental damage, passing on the costs of these practices to current and future generations.

In a sustainable banana economy prices have to reflect real costs at every stage of production.

Governments and companies will have to respect minimum social and environmental conditions. Consumers will have to pay a sustainable price, one which includes social and environmental costs and permits the necessary investment in acceptable social conditions and environmental care.

This Charter seeks to build on the opportunities provided by the circumstances outlined in the preamble above to set the banana economy on a course towards sustainability.

III. INSTRUMENTS FOR CHANGE

A number of instruments can be used to achieve sustainability.

GOVERNMENT AND INTER-GOVERNMENTAL INITIATIVES

If the goal of sustainable development is to become a reality, clauses must be included in the WTO agreements to guarantee basic social and environmental standards, along the following lines:

Social Clause

The social clause should require WTO members to take steps to ensure the observance of the minimum labour standards specified by an advisory committee to be established by the WTO and the ILO, including those on freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining, minimum age for employment, non-discrimination, equal remuneration and forced labour ¹.

Environmental Clause

The environmental clause should be based on a new agreement on trade and the environment within the WTO. This should establish the minimum standards necessary from the viewpoint of sustainability, based on the environmental effects of the way in which a product is produced, and should specify the conditions and procedures under which trade measures would be allowed.

PRIVATE SECTOR INITIATIVES

Collective labour agreements, codes of conduct and fair trade can play an import role in moving towards sustainable banana production and trade.

Freedom of Association and Collective Agreements

For plantation workers, the right to freedom of association and free collective bargaining is of fundamental importance. Collective labour agreements between banana companies and trade unions--both nationally and internationally--would be an important step towards better working conditions.

Corporate Codes of Conduct with Independent Verification

Corporate codes of conduct which establish minimum social and environmental corporate policies and standards can contribute to a more sustainable banana trade. They should

(a) cover all buying and subcontracting relationships;
(b) be based on ILO conventions, including those relating to the right to organise and to collective bargaining, the right to a living wage and to safe and healthy working circumstances, maximum hours of work, prohibition of child labour and non-discrimination;
(c) incorporate internationally agreed standards which address health and environmental problems, such as those set out in Agenda 21 ², in the FAO_s International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides ³, the Prior Informed Consent Convention of FAO & UNEP ⁴ and ILO_s Convention concerning Safety in the Use of Chemicals at work ⁵.
If they are to have credibility, they must provide for effective independent monitoring and verification.

Fair Trade

Fair trade labelling (based on social and environmental standards established and guaranteed by FLO-FairTrade Labelling Organizations International), alternative trade, and organic production (based on IFOAM standards) are important. They are instruments which enable producers, especially disadvantaged producers, to increase their control over their own future, have a fair and just return for their work, continuity of income and decent working and living conditions through sustainable development.

IV. REFORM OF THE EUROPEAN UNION BANANA REGIME

Any reform of the European Union banana import regulations should favour the continuation of a tariff quota regime (which ensures a higher price for bananas sold in the EU), with individual country quotas. But the quota is justified only if the resulting extra price is used for investment in sustainability. Preferential access for ACP countries should continue, in accordance with the provisions of Protocol 5 of the Lomé Convention.

The licensing system must be replaced by one which permits market access to operators (including fair trade operators) on an equal basis.

In any reform there should be formal consultations with the representatives of small producers and workers directly affected by the regime.

¹ ILO Convention 87 (Freedom of Association); ILO Convention 98 (Right to Collective Bargaining); ILO Convention 138 and Recommendation 146 (Minimum Age); ILO Convention 111 (Discrimination); ILO Convention 100 (Equal Remuneration); ILO Conventions 29 and 105 (Forced and Bonded Labour);
² See Agenda 21 (especially points 6.41.d, 6.41.l.111, 9.24.3,14.27.a, 14.41.c, 14.74-14.82, 16.3.c, 16.23.b, 17.32, 17.28.i, 18.40.b.vii, 18.40.d.iii, 18.40.g.iv, 18.59.a.vii, 18.76.d.i.v, 19.45, 19.49.g, 19.49.i, 24.6, 32.5.c);
³ International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides, adopted November 28, 1985 (Amended to include Prior Informed Consent in Article 9 as adopted by the 25th Session of the FAO Conference in November 1989);
⁴ This convention deals with information exchange in the export of dangerous pesticides and industrial chemicals and was agreed on March 14, 1998 in Brussels;
⁵ ILO Convention 170 adopted June 25, 1990.