The WTO ruled, not surprisingly, that Chiquita's right to make a profit trumped EU preferences for bananas from small farmers in the Caribbean. These workers are already experiencing significant roll-backs due to the continuing crisis in the banana industry. Even small and medium producers in Ecuador are opposed to the plan because of concerns that it will lead to further consolidation of the Ecuadorian banana industry. Competition with Ecuador is not fair competition based on productivity, good business practices, or a better banana. Rather, it is based on the fact that Ecuadorian banana workers are paid poverty-level wages that are a fraction of those in neighboring countries and are also denied benefits that many banana workers have been able to secure in other countries, including health care, housing and schooling for their children.
Environmental standards are also lower than in many other banana-producing regions.