Banana export timeline in St Lucia

Officials in Castries, St. Lucia say the banana industry in that country as well as in the Windward Islands could need more than six months to fully recover from the devastation it suffered from Hurricane Tomas.



The banana industry in St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines suffered heavy losses after being hit by Tomas.



However, the St Lucia government says the country may be able to resume banana exports by May or June of next year.



Banana exporting company Winfresh says the industry could suffer losses of nearly 30 million US dollars over the next six months.



The company says exports could drop by 40,000 tonnes for the year, representing a loss of 20 per cent of total exports for 2010.