San Antonio College Library

Bananas, the most frequently consumed fresh fruit in the United States, have been linked to Miss Chiquita and Carmen Miranda, "banana republics," and Banana Republic clothing stores-everything from exotic kitsch, to Third World dictatorships, to middle-class fashion. But how did the rise in banana consumption in the United States affect the banana-growing regions of Central America? In this lively, interdisciplinary study, John Soluri integrates agroecology,...

Examines the issue of "fair-trade bananas," the most-consumed fruit in the world. While as many as ten million people are involved in growing, packing, and shipping bananas, American consumers have only recently begun to think about the workers and their working conditions. Analyses whether a farmer-worker-consumer alliance could collaborate to promote a fair-trade label for bananas that would appeal to North American shoppers.

In this exploration of corporate maneuvering and subterfuge, journalist Chapman shows how the importer United Fruit set the precedent for the institutionalized power and influence of today's multinational companies. This infamous company was arguably the most controversial global corporation ever--from the jungles of Costa Rica to the dramatic suicide of its CEO, who leapt from an office on the 44th floor of the Pan Am building in New York City. From...