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The distinctive red-tipped bananas founded and established by Innisfail’s Frank and Dianne Sciacca (pictured) have won the Environmental Protection Agency’s inaugural Rural Sustainability Award and are now set to capture the Japanese market.
Eight years ago, Dianne Sciacca couldn’t believe her eyes when she peeped into the packing shed at the Mourilyan banana plantation she runs with husband Frank. Keen to make their eco-friendly bananas stand out from the crowd, Frank had marked the tips of a hand of bananas with blue and green paint. A great idea was born and after a rigorous round of health and safety checks, the couple finally settled on food grade wax (the same used on cheese) to provide the distinctive red, green and blue marks for their specially grown bananas.
Today, Pacific Coast Eco Bananas are available all over Australia and are now being targeted at Japanese consumers. The bananas are grown under an environmentally-sustainable ecoganic protocol. Their Farming with Nature system relies on the interaction of plants, weeds and insects and uses significantly reduced inputs of fertiliser and chemicals.
"We use nature’s own pest control methods to cut the use of pesticides, fungicides and fertilisers and in the process, we’ve also reduced runoff entering the Great Barrier Reef lagoon," Frank Sciacca said.
The Pacific Coast Eco Bananas plantation is now supporting a thriving ecosystem with a healthy number of animals, insects and reptiles. Over 20 000 insects representing 250 different species have been categorised and beneficial spiders, wasps, ants and bugs are being encouraged to aid in the biological control of pests. While Cyclone Larry effectively put the Far North Queensland banana industry on hold for nine months, things are returning to normal and Frank and Dianne are now ready to focus on exporting to Japan.
Pacific Coast Eco Bananas are the first Queensland bananas shipped to Japan in 10 years. Scott Ada from the Queensland Government Trade and Investment Office in Tokyo said many Japanese companies were impressed with the Sciacca’s ecoganic production system.
"The timing is right for their eco-friendly product to find a niche market in Japan because the country is in the midst of the LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability) organic and environmental boom."
Last reviewed 29 January 2007