Chiquita Brands International has reported a year-on-year increase in banana prices for the October-November period of 2008, with net revenue per case increasing 8 per cent at its salad and fresh-cut division Fresh Express.
Banana prices in North America jumped 35 per cent compared with 2007, the group said, with sales volumes increasing by 3 per cent.
In Europe, banana prices across the core European markets of the EU-27, Switzerland, Norway and Iceland increased by 1 per cent on a local currency basis, with volumes sold dropping 4 per cent during the two-month period.
The results were affected by Chiquita's cancellation of some lower-priced contracts that were no longer sufficiently profitable amid soaring costs, as well as a continued focus on premium quality product over market share.
'We continue our pricing discipline to help offset higher industry costs,' said Chiquita chairman and CEO Fernando Aguirre. 'Banana volume remains about flat, and we expect that the relatively tight industry-wide conditions that we have seen throughout 2008 will continue, especially in light of recent industry-wide flooding which affected parts of Costa Rica and Panama.'
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