Michikazu Kojima

Mt. Apo (2,954m), the highest mountain in the Philippines, is located on Mindanao Island. In the mountainous area alongside Mt. Apo, the banana plantations have been expanding since about 1999.

In the middle of mountains which are 1,000 meters high, a small aircraft began to circle above the banana plantations to spread agricultural chemicals once or twice a week. The banana plantations have already drawn close to the foot of the vegetable field, which was cultivated 20 years ago. The field owner grieved for it, saying, “The forest has gone and coffee trees planted by farmers have also disappeared. The wind blows more strongly and the temperature seems to have gone up. No rain for more than two weeks has begun to shrink the creeks in my neighborhood.”

The banana plantations are managed by several major foreign companies. Some are reducing the use of agricultural chemicals, but there is no change in the overall harmful impact on the environment.

Cultivation area for bananas exported to Japan one-fourth Tokyo's area

Highland bananas, which are grown at locations where temperature differences are large, take a month longer to harvest than traditional lowland bananas. Although they are twice as highly priced, with their taste being so sweet, their annual sales as “high-grade bananas which were grown in a richly natural setting” are increasing in Japan. In summarizing information from several companies, it is said that the import volume of highland bananas has reached 30% of Japan's total banana imports.

Banana import from the Philippines amounted to 740,000 tons in 2002. In terms of harvest per square meter, it is estimated that approximately 550 square kilometers of land, which is equal to one-fourth the size of Tokyo, has been cultivated for banana to be exported directly to Japan. The impact of Japanese consumers on production sites is therefore not insubstantial.

The major reason why mangrove forests have reduced in size for pond cultivation of shrimps is because of an increase in exports to Japan. Coffee bushes were traditionally grown in the shade of trees. Nevertheless, due mainly to the spread of a cultivation method called “sun coffee,” which covers the surface of land with coffee bushes, it is pointed out that such a method will damage bio-diversity. Many people are unaware that one of the reasons why a series of large mountain fires occurred frequently in Indonesia in the late 1990s was a fire which was set in connection with plantation development to extract oil from palm to be exported to Japan.

A farmer who picks up a flower bud to keep it away from getting moldy at a chemical- free banana plantation. Photo by Michikazu Kojima at Negros Island in the Philippines

Ecologically oriented cultivation method to be certified by a third party

Both cases are indicative of our consumption destroying the environment. On the other hand, however, consumer power can be demonstrated through the protection and regeneration of the environment as seen in organic and low chemical farming, the methods of which are considered to be highly sustainable. Consumers are vested with such power.

However, it is not so easy to put such power into practice, because there are also difficult problems associated with ecologically oriented cultivation. Since these agricultural products will be marketed at high prices, making a distinction from other products becomes important. To effect this, there are increasing moves to label commercial products by obtaining “Certification” from a third-party which verifies a cultivation method.

Those banana plantations certified by an American NGO, “Rainforest Alliance,” were subject to examinations, including their cultivation method, wild animal protection, labor environment, soil control and waste recycling. This necessitates not only meeting examiner's travel costs and daily expenses but also paying a certification fee which varies according to the size of the plantation.

Such additional expenses are beyond the means of small farmers who have been continuing symbiotic agriculture in harmony with nature. A few small farmers have actually obtained the Certification. Among the 253 plantations certified by the Alliance in the Philippines and Ecuador, only 8 are classified as being smaller than 10 hectares in size.

Imports of, and production guidance for, chemical-free bananas

A higher domination of the market by major companies which have certification will result in a reduction in markets for small farmers' products. If such a situation continues, large plantations will expand and traditional farmers will end up losing their land. If that happens, there is a likelihood that those farmers who have been engaged in cycle farming will be driven to slash and burn forested areas to turn them into farmlands and they may have to start farming with lower sustainability under worse conditions. In order to avoid this, it is necessary to support production activities for small farmers.

Activity supported by Alter Trade Japan, Inc. in Tokyo is one such attempt. From over ten years ago, the company has been importing chemical-free bananas form small and landless farmers in Negros Island in the Philippines and delivering them to Japanese consumers via cooperative associations. Recently, in order to secure a stable supply of high quality banana for consumers, it began to instruct farmers on how to produce the fruit.

Consumer power of Japan is considered to be one initiative for providing a solution to environmental problems prevailing in rural Asia. Farmers who sustain rural communities learn environmentally sustainable production methods, which consumers will support. We would like to further expand these activities.