An enlightening introduction to the world of bananas

An interesting and enlightening talk was given by Andrew Denham-Smith, Managing director of Fyffes Group Limited, to postgraduate students as part of their module in Agri-food supply management. The talk also attracted final year undergraduate students who were eager to enhance their understanding of supply chains.

Fyffes is one of the leading Fresh Produce Companies with Headquarters in Dublin, and the Fyffe brand whilst closely linked to bananas supplies a range of fruit including Gold pineapples, Fyffe Melons, and Mushrooms.

Andrew’s presentation provided a fascinating insight into the complexities of managing an international fresh produce supply chain. Fyffes draws produce from over 65 countries; 15 alone source their bananas and these are largely located in South America e.g. Costa Rica and Mexico. Fyffe operates an integrated supply chain; owning farms, shipping interests and logistics, as well as ripening facilities. Andrew’s responsibility is the management of supply to the UK.

The talk gave students insights into the challenges faced in ensuring delivery; the management of growers, shipping and ripening presenting their own challenges.

Andrew responded to an invite from Dr Jane Eastham to come and talk to postgraduate students. His daughter, Alice, is a student on campus. Students greatly enjoyed the talk and it was a common view amongst the cohort that the talk added flavor and substance to the material delivered throughout the week. 

One student from Holland said: “it was an extremely enjoyable talk that put the theory into context”