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In order to help secure the international banana supply chain, Chiquita Brands International has developed and hosted the first-ever Banana Trade Law Enforcement Conference, which took place in Antwerp, Belgium recently.

The privately sponsored law enforcement event was created to facilitate communication between industry partners and law enforcement agencies, with the goal of securing the point-to-point security of all shipping vessels.

Edmundo Guevara, director of Chiquita corporate security and a former special agent with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), coordinated the conference, while attendees came from eight South American and European countries in the fields of banana supply, shipping, ports and law enforcement.

Delegates collaborated to implement best practices and generate more effective ways to secure the supply chain, with recommendations made and a date set to reconvene in September to measure their implementation.

'A safe and secure supply chain across the globe is of vital importance to Chiquita's business and the security of the countries in which we operate,' said group chairman and CEO Fernando Aguirre. 'It's not just our responsibility to ensure our products move through the supply chain as quickly as possible, but it is also our duty to collaborate with government agencies in securing our ports and the vessels and cargo that travel through them.'