Gustavo Marun, the president of the Regional Banana Corporation (Agroban), stated yesterday that the University of California Davis (United States) will conduct a sustainability study of the Ecuadorian banana sector. Marun also said that this was an effort of the private sector.

The study requires an investment of $150,000.

Marun said that Agroban had been working with this university for a year on sustainability, achieving greater productivity, performing good environmental management, and good profitability.

He and other industry leaders, such as Richard Salazar, the administrator of the Banana Marketing and Export Association (Acorbanec), met yesterday with Courtney Riggle, a sustainability specialist from the Institute of Sustainable Agriculture at the University of California Davis.

The expert was given statistics on the productivity and export of the fruit, and learned about the reality of the markets to which it arrives, including the United States, wher between January and August of this year Ecuador was the third biggest supplier (with 16.07%), behind Guatemala (39.03%) and Costa Rica (16.58%).

Riggle said that this was the first time that the University conducted a study of bananas in Ecuador and that the results would be ready in a year, after they collect data from the countrys farms.