I am a banana from the sunny Dominican Republic. I was born in Manzanillo on the coast, in the province of Monte Cristi. Here the conditions are ideal for growing up as an I AM Organic banana. The climate in the Dominican Republic is perfect for bananas. An old, very high volcano in the centre of the country ensures that it often rains here (enough water); the soil is extremely fertile (especially along the rivers) and the country is relatively close to Europe (ten days’ sailing).

In order to guarantee the best quality all year round and to minimise the impact on the environment, we look for the best place to grow each I AM Organic banana. Preferably as close to home as possible, of course. As bananas do not grow year-round in Europe, I have come to you from the Dominican Republic.

Bananas grow in bunches high up in a banana plant. The leaves of the plant grow in a spiral. A banana plant of the Cavendish variety can grow up to three metres high and a bunch can weigh up to 50 kilos. It takes about nine months for a banana to mature and be harvested. The banana stem produces a bunch of bananas once only. To produce more bananas, the mother plant is cut off after a new shoot has formed, which will in turn form the next bunch.

As I grew up, I was lovingly cared for every day by Jetta van den Berg and her employees. Jetta is originally from the Netherlands and went to the Dominican Republic on an internship as part of her studies at Wageningen University. She liked the country and the people so much that she stayed. Now she owns two organic banana plantations in the Dominican Republic, including the state-of-the-art plantation where I come from: Quinta Pasadena.

Quinta Pasadena is a modern 165-hectare plantation that has always produced organically since its establishment in 2004. It has been set up on a grand scale with ingenious water management. Banana plantations need a lot of water. The farm is located next to a river, so water is guaranteed. In wet periods, there is a risk of flooding. Jetta, with her Dutch roots, has built dykes and locks to protect the plantation.

In addition to the plantation, Jetta has created a nature reserve which is a haven for birds. It is a kind of lake or actually wetland, which can also act as a water buffer.

After harvesting, the mother plant is cut down to make room for the daughter plant. The remains are deliberately left to enrich the soil.

Jetta keeps goats and cows, which provide the bulk of the manure.

A solar farm has been built, with solar panels replacing the old diesel engines to provide the plantation with electricity.

Until bananas grow in your back garden, I will have to travel to get to you. From the Dominican Republic, that means partly by land, but mostly by ship. After harvesting, we are cut from the bunch, checked for quality and washed. Then, together with my banana friends, I am packed in boxes and driven by lorry in a refrigerated container to Santo Domingo (south) or Manzanillo (north). From there, we sail to Rotterdam or Vlissingen in about ten days.

On arrival in the Netherlands, we go into storage in ripening rooms. It takes about five to ten days until we have just the right degree of ripeness. I AM Organic ripens us for about twice as long as most other ripeners, so that the flavour has time to develop.

And now I’m here in your hands. Enjoy!

Single I AM Organic bananas only carry a sticker. This sticker is made of recycled FSC paper. FSC stands for Forest Stewardship Council, an international organisation that promotes conservation and responsible forest management worldwide, i.e., taking into account the ecological, social and economic aspects of forest management in a balanced way.

We also use sustainable materials on the way to the points of sale. For example, I AM Organic bananas arrive in the Netherlands in an FSC box. In the box, they are still in a sealed plastic bag, as this influences the ripening process and thus the quality and flavour.

I am forthright in almost everything, especially when it comes to flavour. But when it comes to CO2, I am very neutral. And seriously too, because the climate concerns us all. Whether you are a vegetable, a fruit or a human being. We do not need to tell you that CO2 emissions must be significantly reduced to prevent the climate from changing permanently and conditions from becoming more difficult or, even worse, unliveable.

At I AM Organic, we do everything possible to keep our carbon footprint as low as possible. But, we hear you thinking, you said you are carbon neutral, right? That’s right, but at the moment it is just impossible to get certain types of organic fruit and vegetables to you without emitting CO2. That is why I AM Organic has made deliberate choices aimed at emitting as little CO2 as possible. By working with small-scale, organic farmers. And by opting for sustainable transport. And by using as little (and if so then recyclable) packaging as possible.

The CO2 emissions that remain after that are our so-called footprint, and that is as small as possible. But it’s still not small enough. And not completely neutral. This cannot be done overnight; it requires several partners and much more investment. But we don’t want to wait for that. I AM Organic wants to make a difference today, by precisely identifying and fully offsetting our CO2 emissions. For example, we work together with the FairClimateFund. They invest in FairTrade certified projects where, for example, trees are planted instead of being cut down. In so doing, they offset our CO2 emissions, and our products are carbon neutral despite the small footprint.

We have our carbon footprint calculated by an independent institute, called CO2- Correct, according to a Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) principle. LCA calculations include
aspects such as:
- Land use: impact on land change, such as deforestation or pollution
- Growing and cultivating: impact on resources and machines during growth
- Packaging and processing: the CO2 impact of such things as refrigeration or packaging or the CO2 impact of the packaging materials used
- Transport: CO2 impact during transport from the country of origin to the final retail destination
- Retail: energy consumption by the retailer, e.g., for storage or refrigeration

Okay, you got me. And now? What are you going to do with me? Do you know how best to wash, peel, cut or store me? In the fridge or not? And most of all, how I taste the best and in which recipes I appear. I’ll tell you all about it here.