2021 Philippine Banana Report

During the first half of 2021, Philippine banana exports dropped by 47% to 1.154 million metric tons (MMT), a five-year low, due to a reduction in production and logistical challenges. Global demand for Philippine bananas is mainly driven by burgeoning import demand from China, as well as sustained income-driven demand from Japan. China has become the largest importer of Philippine bananas, dislodging Japan, which had been the biggest market for decades.
Philippine production dropped due to the effect of Typhoon Pablo which damaged a large portion of the banana plantations in Mindanao. For bananas, the primary concern is the Panama disease, which is a soil-borne disease and severely impacts products that are subject to monocropping.