Struggling Colombian banana marketer Banacol announced a financial restructuring plan last week in a bid to deal with mounting financial pressures.
According to a report in Elcolombiano.com, the company is facing debts of US$184m resulting from high production costs, low banana pricing and a poor exchange rate. The company’s assets are valued at US$209m. The Colombian government has appointed a supervisory body to oversee the reorganisation of Banacol’s finances.
The company said its existing trade commitments to European and North American clients are not expected to be affected by the restructuring.
Guillermo Rivera Zapata, president of Colombia’s biggest banana union Sintrainagro, told the newspaper that the restructuring would help the company “solve the difficult situation it faces and become economically sustainable, while safeguarding jobs and avoiding regional conflict among workers and the wider society”.
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