Banana origins can be traced back to Adam and Eve where evidence suggests that original sin fruit it was not the apple but the banana. African lore recounts that Kintu was the 1st human being on earth who in order to end humanity suffering had to carry a banana root in his travels with his wife Nambi.
One theory suggests that bananas originated in a single place, modern day Malaysia, and spread uniformly. However, new studies suggest it may have started in multiple places and travelled in multiple routes. Bananas in Africa for example are thought to have arrived in waves, having settled twice in East African shores with plantains dating back to about 3,000 years ago. The bananas that settled there became distinct. During the dark ages a 3rd kind of banana came to Africa as a byproduct of slave trade.
Bananas traveled in trade routes, with people who sailed, so they moved counterclockwise around Australia, New Zealand, Polynesia and ending in Hawaii. You can tell how the banana travelled by how they were incorporated in the language. Ex: in Australia and New Zealand it was called maika; in Hawaii, mai’a; and in Indonesia, pisang. They traveled from ASIA so the ones more easily grown and less susceptible to diseases were the one that migrated with the sailors. By the time it reached the Pacific only a few varieties were left.
One theory suggests that bananas originated in a single place, modern day Malaysia, and spread uniformly. However, new studies suggest it may have started in multiple places and travelled in multiple routes. Bananas in Africa for example are thought to have arrived in waves, having settled twice in East African shores with plantains dating back to about 3,000 years ago. The bananas that settled there became distinct. During the dark ages a 3rd kind of banana came to Africa as a byproduct of slave trade.
Bananas traveled in trade routes, with people who sailed, so they moved counterclockwise around Australia, New Zealand, Polynesia and ending in Hawaii. You can tell how the banana travelled by how they were incorporated in the language. Ex: in Australia and New Zealand it was called maika; in Hawaii, mai’a; and in Indonesia, pisang. They traveled from ASIA so the ones more easily grown and less susceptible to diseases were the one that migrated with the sailors. By the time it reached the Pacific only a few varieties were left.
A French naturalist named Nicolas Baudin deposited one of the fruits in the island of Martinique in his travels. They called it Baudins fig. Jean François Pouyat carried the fruit from Martinique to Jamaica where they called it ‘poyo banana’, which was later renamed to Gros Michel as the fruit was large and masculine.
The final stop for the banana was the Americas. By the time it arrived here, different kinds of banana varieties had narrowed. There are 2 prevailing theories of how they got here: from Europeans who first inhabited South America or from Polynesian sailors who did not settle but brought it to South America. 2016 will mark the 500th birthday of the banana reaching America.
Rewind 130 years and we see industrialization in America reach its peak around the summer of 1876, at the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition. At that convention was the banana, along with Heinz Ketchup, mechanized pencils and steam engines. Frederick Upham Adams built the first streamlined locomotive
in 1900. He was also in love with bananas which he expressed in his 1914 book, Conquest of the Tropics. Bananas at this time were a luxury item and eaten as a status. When they were sold they were peeled and sliced to prevent the fruit’s suggestive shape from offending Victorians.
The final stop for the banana was the Americas. By the time it arrived here, different kinds of banana varieties had narrowed. There are 2 prevailing theories of how they got here: from Europeans who first inhabited South America or from Polynesian sailors who did not settle but brought it to South America. 2016 will mark the 500th birthday of the banana reaching America.
Rewind 130 years and we see industrialization in America reach its peak around the summer of 1876, at the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition. At that convention was the banana, along with Heinz Ketchup, mechanized pencils and steam engines. Frederick Upham Adams built the first streamlined locomotive
in 1900. He was also in love with bananas which he expressed in his 1914 book, Conquest of the Tropics. Bananas at this time were a luxury item and eaten as a status. When they were sold they were peeled and sliced to prevent the fruit’s suggestive shape from offending Victorians.
Lorenzo Dow Baker, epitome of a 1900th century English Sailor, bought 160 bunches of banana from Ciudad Bolivar and made a profit after selling them. He bought land in Jamaica and started planting lots of banana. This became a booming business that attracted many people who wanted to work with him. Jamaica at the time was the closest place to grow banana from the US. A trip could take up to 3 weeks which was longer than the bananas shelf life.
Andrew Preston had worked himself up the ranks from a janitor to a grocery wholesaler, buying fruit from the docks. He bought the bananas from Baker and was able to sell them for profit so became partners with Baker. Together they started Boston Fruit Company, now known as Chiquita. Preston wanted the banana to be more popular than the Apple. They abandoned sails ships for steam-powered vessels to cut the transportation trip of the banana from Jamaica to the US. Preston had the idea to refrigerate the banana to keep them green. To cut on cost Preston started to buy up the entire supply chain of the business, from the plantation growing, aggressively dominating land and labor, to the transportation to the distribution. As a result they were nicknamed “El Pulpo” (Octopus) in Latin America. Banana cost was able to be cut and became cheaper than apples.
Andrew Preston had worked himself up the ranks from a janitor to a grocery wholesaler, buying fruit from the docks. He bought the bananas from Baker and was able to sell them for profit so became partners with Baker. Together they started Boston Fruit Company, now known as Chiquita. Preston wanted the banana to be more popular than the Apple. They abandoned sails ships for steam-powered vessels to cut the transportation trip of the banana from Jamaica to the US. Preston had the idea to refrigerate the banana to keep them green. To cut on cost Preston started to buy up the entire supply chain of the business, from the plantation growing, aggressively dominating land and labor, to the transportation to the distribution. As a result they were nicknamed “El Pulpo” (Octopus) in Latin America. Banana cost was able to be cut and became cheaper than apples.
Late 19th century refrigeration for transporting bananas required blocks of ice. Joseph Vaccaro bought up all the ice factories along the Gulf Coast and started his company Standard Fruit, which is now Dole. By 1915 the business had grown so large that it bought most of the ice factories in New Orleans, in order to refrigerate its banana ships, leading to its president Joseph Vaccaro becoming known as the “Ice King”.
Jamaica who had up to now been the growers of banana was running out of land to grow. Central America became an option but had 2 problems: all land available was covered in thick forest and it was farther away, hence they could not ship the bananas fast enough.
Henry Meiggs, East Coast businessmen, built Fishermans Wharf in Boston but got kicked out of the US because he couldn’t afford the project so he went to Chile where he started building the country a railroad and became wealthy. He moved on to Peru were he became powerful. He started building a railroad in Costa Rica in 1871 and brought his nephew, Minor C. Keith, to oversee the project. This project involved a railroad that cut through a volcano, named Irazú, making it extremely dangerous and killing most everyone that was hired, thus not allowing for the completion of it.
After Meiggs death, Keith had full control of the project and short of 30 miles from completion went broke. Determined to finish it he travelled to England and borrowed 1.2 million euros and returned to tell the Costa Rica president, Prospero Fernandez Oreamuno, he would complete the railroad for free as long as he had full control of the routes and all adjacent land, 800,000 acres. The president agreed and upon completion of the track Keith planted bananas across parts of the routes, to feed his workers at first, but soon realized he could bring them to Limon and ship them to the US. He expanded the banana plantations across the route, became extremely rich and bought the affection of all by tossing gold coins to kids. He became the main exporter of banana from Central America while the rest continued to work out of Jamaica. At the top of his game the British bank requested to be paid back but he couldn’t repay his loan and declared bankruptcy. Preston took this opportunity to partner with Keith in the banana business. On March 30, 1899 the merged company became United Fruits. Keith continued to build railroads in exchange for land. Preston painted all of his banana fleet white and named them the “Great White Fleet”, offering cruise liners in it to see the banana industry. By now, Baker was out of the picture.
Henry Meiggs, East Coast businessmen, built Fishermans Wharf in Boston but got kicked out of the US because he couldn’t afford the project so he went to Chile where he started building the country a railroad and became wealthy. He moved on to Peru were he became powerful. He started building a railroad in Costa Rica in 1871 and brought his nephew, Minor C. Keith, to oversee the project. This project involved a railroad that cut through a volcano, named Irazú, making it extremely dangerous and killing most everyone that was hired, thus not allowing for the completion of it.
After Meiggs death, Keith had full control of the project and short of 30 miles from completion went broke. Determined to finish it he travelled to England and borrowed 1.2 million euros and returned to tell the Costa Rica president, Prospero Fernandez Oreamuno, he would complete the railroad for free as long as he had full control of the routes and all adjacent land, 800,000 acres. The president agreed and upon completion of the track Keith planted bananas across parts of the routes, to feed his workers at first, but soon realized he could bring them to Limon and ship them to the US. He expanded the banana plantations across the route, became extremely rich and bought the affection of all by tossing gold coins to kids. He became the main exporter of banana from Central America while the rest continued to work out of Jamaica. At the top of his game the British bank requested to be paid back but he couldn’t repay his loan and declared bankruptcy. Preston took this opportunity to partner with Keith in the banana business. On March 30, 1899 the merged company became United Fruits. Keith continued to build railroads in exchange for land. Preston painted all of his banana fleet white and named them the “Great White Fleet”, offering cruise liners in it to see the banana industry. By now, Baker was out of the picture.
Samuel Zemurray turned into a banana tycoon in less than 20 years. He was born in Russia and immigrated to the US where his 1st job was selling household merchandise and his 2nd job was buying bruised and too ripe bananas and selling them to local grocers. He started a company called Cuyamel fruits after he bought a pair of ramshackle steamers and 5,000 acres of cleared forest in Honduras and by 1910 Zemurray was importing fresh bananas to the US. The US government objected to Zemurray’s presence as they were working to have JP Morgan and Company take over Hondurian customs. This would allow tariffs collected in Central America to be funneled to US banks.
In the 19th century soldiers for hire were known as filibusters, the most infamous being William Walker who shot his way into the presidency of Nicaragua and tried to establish a slave state. Nicknamed “Sam the Banana Man”, Zemurray hired the 2 most legendary filibusters of the time: Lee Christmas and Guy “the machine gun” Molony. Sam thought of a plan to outsmart the US state department and Hondurian government by reinstating prior president Manuel Bonilla to take back control of Honduras and allow Sam to operate tax-free in the nation.
In the 19th century soldiers for hire were known as filibusters, the most infamous being William Walker who shot his way into the presidency of Nicaragua and tried to establish a slave state. Nicknamed “Sam the Banana Man”, Zemurray hired the 2 most legendary filibusters of the time: Lee Christmas and Guy “the machine gun” Molony. Sam thought of a plan to outsmart the US state department and Hondurian government by reinstating prior president Manuel Bonilla to take back control of Honduras and allow Sam to operate tax-free in the nation.
United Fruit, now Chiquita, didn't like competition and to get rid of them usually crushed them in price wars. It purchased part of Elders & Fiffes and drove Atlantic fruit out of business. By the late 1920s United Fruit was worth over 100 million dollars and had 67,000 employees and business interest in 32 countries. Preston was president of 2 banks, 1 insurance company and a Steel manufacturer. Keith had become incredibly powerful and nicknamed the “uncrowned king of Central America”. They hired doctors to endorse the practice of feeding bananas to babies and suggesting that the perfect breakfast was bananas, cornflakes and milk. They put coupons inside cereal boxes redeemable for bananas and published textbooks for education departments about bananas. Around this time what would be called Panama disease would start. United Fruits generally did not care as they could keep up with demand as they continued to cut into forests. At this time, the Cavendish was grown as minor commercial variety in a few places.
The first efforts to breed stronger bananas were conducted by academies. Their primary task was to determine their genetic makeup. Panama disease created a sense of urgency so a lot of resources were destined to this research. In 1922 the British government founded the imperial college of tropical agriculture (ICTA) with the task of solving Panama Disease. Scientists believed that to do this they would have to create a hybrid from a Gros Michel and a resistant wild variety without altering the taste or shipping characteristics.
A research plantation in Trinidad was open to putting the resulting bananas in a field test in Trinidad. It was frustrating and seemed like an impossible task, especially since they needed to use seeds for the task which would yield in plants with seeds which would not be commercially viable. Scientist began searching Africa, Asia and the Americas for new wild species that were transported back to Trinidad and Jamaica to be stored and tested. In 1925 a promising new banana was created that was resistant to Panama disease named IC1 after the imperial college. The 1st generation was resistant to Panama Disease but subsequent generations lost their resistance. It also went down in quality, for example they would ripen at different times. Although it was a failure a lot more was understood about the banana.
The effect of the Panama disease was that fruit were grown, got diseased, then plantations would be abandoned for new ones and the cycle would repeat. Jobs would be lost due to this relocation and no real sustainable infrastructure would be created because they knew this could be temporary, thus creating poor conditions for the working class. A lot of the worker movements were inspired by the Soviet Union and the banana industry saw this as a threat as it couldn't survive without cheap fruit which meant the need for cheap labor.
The effect of the Panama disease was that fruit were grown, got diseased, then plantations would be abandoned for new ones and the cycle would repeat. Jobs would be lost due to this relocation and no real sustainable infrastructure would be created because they knew this could be temporary, thus creating poor conditions for the working class. A lot of the worker movements were inspired by the Soviet Union and the banana industry saw this as a threat as it couldn't survive without cheap fruit which meant the need for cheap labor.
Panama disease was destroying land so it continuously needed new land so territory needed to be acquired and cultivated as inexpensive as possible and companies had to work consistently to stay ahead of the cycle of exploitation, violence and revolution. United Fruit had been in Colombia since 1899 where it grew coffee along with bananas. Conservative and liberals had fought the brutal war of 1000 days that ultimately brought a banana friendly government to power.
By 1927 the Colombia political system seemed to be leaning against the banana conglomerate. The National Assembly ordered investigations on United Fruits land acquisition policies. Banana workers felt emboldened. October 1928, 32,000 workers went on strike demanding medical treatment and proper toilet facilities as well as being paid in cash rather than company issued redeemable United Fruit coupons and to be considered as true employees rather than contractors. United Fruits dismissed their demands leading to the Colombian government suspending the right to free assembly and free speech. Martial law was declared on December 5th. The day after banana workers gathered in the town square waiting to hear a speech by the regional governor. General Cortez Vargas instead ordered for them to be killed before foreign troops could arrive. Four machine guns surrounded the square and the troops opened fire, killing over 1,000.
By 1927 the Colombia political system seemed to be leaning against the banana conglomerate. The National Assembly ordered investigations on United Fruits land acquisition policies. Banana workers felt emboldened. October 1928, 32,000 workers went on strike demanding medical treatment and proper toilet facilities as well as being paid in cash rather than company issued redeemable United Fruit coupons and to be considered as true employees rather than contractors. United Fruits dismissed their demands leading to the Colombian government suspending the right to free assembly and free speech. Martial law was declared on December 5th. The day after banana workers gathered in the town square waiting to hear a speech by the regional governor. General Cortez Vargas instead ordered for them to be killed before foreign troops could arrive. Four machine guns surrounded the square and the troops opened fire, killing over 1,000.
Effects of the Colombia Massacre were beyond far reaching. Liberals used it to take power. United Fruits attempted to maintain their position. After the events of the banana massacre, the banana industry left Colombia and went to Costa Rica and used the advance of Panama Disease as an excuse.
Jorge Eliecer Gaitan, a politician and lawmaker who was demanding an investigation into the banana massacre used the country’s radio network to denounce the “oligarchy” and make fiery speeches advocating the interests of “the people”. In 1933 he formed his own political party and was a dominant force in Colombian politics until 1948. He was assassinated as he was about to win the electoral campaign. A period known as “La Violencia” followed. Rival political forces in Colombia would launch a brutal gorilla war. 180,000 Colombians died before a military dictatorship seized control in 1953.
United Fruits (Chiquita) had been able to take out all competitors through pricing wars except for Standard Fruit mostly because United Fruits had at one time been a partial owner. United Fruits battled Cuyamel (Samuel Zemurray) who owned an extensive steamboat fleet and had a superior irrigation system in Honduras. After the Colombian banana massacre Cuyamel stocks began to rise as United Fruit stocks plummeted. United Fruits responded with a pricing war whose only effect was to lower stock prices even more. On a different front United Fruits had hired Wilson Popenoe (link) in 1925 to gather samples of both wild and local fruits from around the world. He was also charged with a secondary task of determining what crops might be able to grow on land ruined by Panama disease. After the death of Preston in 1924 and Keith in 1929 control of the company had fallen to shareholder, the largest being the bank of Boston, whose president was Daniel D. Wing.
Jorge Eliecer Gaitan, a politician and lawmaker who was demanding an investigation into the banana massacre used the country’s radio network to denounce the “oligarchy” and make fiery speeches advocating the interests of “the people”. In 1933 he formed his own political party and was a dominant force in Colombian politics until 1948. He was assassinated as he was about to win the electoral campaign. A period known as “La Violencia” followed. Rival political forces in Colombia would launch a brutal gorilla war. 180,000 Colombians died before a military dictatorship seized control in 1953.
United Fruits (Chiquita) had been able to take out all competitors through pricing wars except for Standard Fruit mostly because United Fruits had at one time been a partial owner. United Fruits battled Cuyamel (Samuel Zemurray) who owned an extensive steamboat fleet and had a superior irrigation system in Honduras. After the Colombian banana massacre Cuyamel stocks began to rise as United Fruit stocks plummeted. United Fruits responded with a pricing war whose only effect was to lower stock prices even more. On a different front United Fruits had hired Wilson Popenoe (link) in 1925 to gather samples of both wild and local fruits from around the world. He was also charged with a secondary task of determining what crops might be able to grow on land ruined by Panama disease. After the death of Preston in 1924 and Keith in 1929 control of the company had fallen to shareholder, the largest being the bank of Boston, whose president was Daniel D. Wing.
In 1930 United Fruit bought out Cuyamel despite it being very expensive giving Sam 300,000 shares of United Fruit and a seat at the board of directors. Sam planned to sell his stocks and retire but they plummeted. When Sam got his shares, a single share was worth $158 and by 1932 each one sold for $10. Sam loudly voiced his concern but no one took him seriously. So he took matters into his own hands and one by one convinced shareholders that current management was destroying the company, eventually taking control of the entire company himself.
Claude Wardlaw conducted a survey in 1931 on the Panama disease and found 15,000 acres infested in Jamaica, 50,000 in Panama. He was the 1st to unlock the mystery of how this disease spread which was not through air as believed but through soil. This was due to poor agricultural practices and was being transported by people. It was easier to pack up and leave than to administer these plantations properly to prevent the disease from spreading. The banana industry also discovered that the disease was spread by water running through the banana roots and identified it as a fungus. Breeders created IC2, named after the Imperial College, which was a cross between Gros Michel and a wild Asian species. The banana company agreed to grow it in Honduras but the fruit lost resistant in subsequent generations. Scientists suggested that to slow the disease the company should quarantine infected areas and make sure that workers vehicles and tools were cleaned and sanitized. Wardlaw saw that the banana industry was throwing the essential America eco system out of balance because they were cutting down all the forests for banana plantations that they would eventually abandon.
In 1935 a new pathogen of the disease appeared called Sigatoka. It killed plants outright but it took a while for the actual infection to display itself. Bananas would be shipped in what seemed a perfectly good condition but soon after arrival they would die and rot. Sigatoka eventually killed the banana plants as well. It was more rapid than Panama disease and spread airborne. In a research effort led by Wilson Popenoe, they discovered that the pathogen could be killed with copper sulfate which they sprayed on fields through a mixture called the Bordeaux mixture. A lot of infrastructure was created to supply everything needed to eradicate this pathogen. This caused a lot of the small banana companies to go out of business due to the elevated costs. Standard fruits were untouchable due to antitrust laws.
Bordeaux mixture made the workers sick and their skin literally turned blue by the heavy spraying. Because of their bright blue colored they were nicknamed ‘pericos’ (parakeet in English). This caused them to lose their sense of scent, lose their appetite and eventually die.
In 1935 a new pathogen of the disease appeared called Sigatoka. It killed plants outright but it took a while for the actual infection to display itself. Bananas would be shipped in what seemed a perfectly good condition but soon after arrival they would die and rot. Sigatoka eventually killed the banana plants as well. It was more rapid than Panama disease and spread airborne. In a research effort led by Wilson Popenoe, they discovered that the pathogen could be killed with copper sulfate which they sprayed on fields through a mixture called the Bordeaux mixture. A lot of infrastructure was created to supply everything needed to eradicate this pathogen. This caused a lot of the small banana companies to go out of business due to the elevated costs. Standard fruits were untouchable due to antitrust laws.
Bordeaux mixture made the workers sick and their skin literally turned blue by the heavy spraying. Because of their bright blue colored they were nicknamed ‘pericos’ (parakeet in English). This caused them to lose their sense of scent, lose their appetite and eventually die.