Not cultivated in Lanzarote, maybe because we are further north but for the other islands Canarian Bananas are exported to the rest of Europe including the UK. The bananas were originaly introduced to the islands during the15th and 16th centuries from Asia. There is a significant difference between the bananas grown in the Canaries and the ones imported from tropical countries. Canarian bananas are higher in moister and tend to be more juicier.
The Canary Islands’ weather is more variable than that of tropical regions, which has an impact in the length of time that the fruit remains hanging from the tree 6 months as compared to 3 months for the tropical banana, which adds a greater degree of maturity, flavour and aroma to the Canarian variety. The banana represents 33% of the total production of agricultural products in the islands.
Each year 400 million kilos of banana are produced in the Canary Islands, with 9,000 hectares under cultivation, worked by more than 10,000 people. In total, working places related to the banana production are above 27,000, taking into account direct and indirect jobs.