Banana split game

Banana split game 

KEY STAGE 2 UPWARDS 

Notes for teachers 

Aim: To unpeel the story of 

bananas from farm to fruit bowl, 

and see what Fairtrade and justice 

mean along the way. Through role 

play, pupils will bargain over how 

the cost of a banana is split down 

the supply chain, and discuss the 

fairness of this. In the second 

round, they will take roles to argue 

whether to switch to Fairtrade. 

Themes: Common Good, Fairtrade, 

justice and fairness, global neighbours. 

Year 6 RE: Universal Church: Common 

Good; issues of fairness and injustice. 

Key Stage 3 and GCSE: Stewardship 

of Creation and of wealth; exploitation 

of the poor. 

Materials needed: Print and cut out the 

role cards pp5-8 (use one-sided print). 

Either print the Banana Split diagram 

(p4) at A3, project it, or sketch up a large 

version. Optional: access to internet for 

short Fairtrade film; some real Fairtrade 

bananas. Use the Background Notes for 

Teachers to inform the debate. 

Time needed: Keep to 40 minutes by 

moving the discussion along quickly, or 

stretch it out to a longer double session or 

part of an off-timetable day by exploring 

the issues more deeply. 

Introduction 

Ideally, show the 3-minute film ‘Make 

Bananas Fair’ about farmer Foncho on 

the Fairtrade Foundation schools 

website. Or, use this text: 

Have you ever noticed a Fairtrade 

sticker on your bananas? These have a 

very interesting story behind them. 

In the UK we eat 13 million bananas 

every day. Big supermarkets want us 

to buy bananas from them, so they 

price them as low as they can. That’s 

good for shoppers, but can make life 

hard for banana workers and farmers. 

Let’s see how the real cost of a banana 

is split, and how we can be good global 

neighbours by making bananas fair. 

ROUND ONE: The banana split 

1. Roles: 

o Banana worker 

o Plantation owner 

o Shipper 

o Importer 

o Supermarket buyer 

Display the Banana Split diagram. 

Divide pupils into five groups, one per 

role, explaining that each has a part in 

the banana production process. Give 

out the Round One role play cards, 

and give them a few minutes to read. 

2. Split the cost: Pointing to the 

diagram, tell them that one non- 

Fairtrade banana costs 15p, which has 

to be divided up between their five 

groups. Ask them to decide how big 

their share should be. Give them a few 

minutes to prepare their arguments. 

3. Bid: Each group says how much they 

deserve and why. Record the amounts on 

the Banana Split diagram (leave space for 

the real figures). The total amount is 

usually well over 15p. 

Bargain (optional): Say the cost is too 

high, so they must haggle down to 15p. 

Now add the real-life figures to the 

diagram. (PTO) Discuss.

The banana split 

Banana worker 0.5p 

Plantation owner 2.5p 

Shipper 

2p 

Importer and ripener 3.5p 

Supermarket buyer 6.5p 

TOTAL 15p* 

* Representative figures. The split differs slightly 

between countries, and between big and small 

plantations. Supermarket prices also differ. 

5. Discussion prompts: 

 

 

 

Is their cut of the money fair? 

Why do they think the banana 

money is split like this? 

Who loses out most in the 

banana split? 

Now discuss why bananas are so cheap in 

our shops – from 15p to as low as 11p 

each (UK apples typically cost around 20p 

– and they don’t have to travel so far.) 

Explain that supermarkets compete over 

how cheap they can make really popular 

products like bananas. They do this even 

if they lose money on them, just to get 

shoppers through the door (“loss 

leaders”). 

 

 

 

Why might supermarkets sell 

bananas at less than they paid 

for them? 

How do you think they make up 

that loss? 

What do low prices mean for 

banana farmers and workers? 

What about shoppers? 

ROUND TWO: 

Making bananas fair 

1. New roles: Hand out the Round Two 

role cards. Give pupils a few minutes to 

read their new stories and prepare their 

arguments. The ‘not sure’ roles can 

decide which way to go, or leave this till 

the debate. Frank the Shipper has now 

become a Shopper/Dad, (shipping costs 

stay the same whether bananas are fairly 

traded or not). 

2. Shall we switch? 

Have the teams present their arguments, 

and hold a negotiating round over 

whether to switch to Fairtrade. Is it in 

everyone’s interest? The teacher can play 

an antagonist role here if needed, arguing 

against Fairtrade to keep things lively. 

You could bring different teams into the 

debate at different points depending on 

how it is going – the worker and shopper 

for example can try to push the others 

to switch. 

3. Discussion prompts: 

If the class switched to Fairtrade, 

who was hardest to persuade? 

If teams couldn’t agree, how do 

you think this reflects real life? 

How is Fairtrade a better choice? 

What choices is Frank the Shopper 

making about how to spend his 

money, and what does being a 

global neighbour mean in this 

context? 

What other Fairtrade items can we 

buy? 

[Coffee, 

tea, 

chocolate, 

flowers, 

sugar, 

cotton – 

and gold!] 

Explain that they are going to try and 

debate a possible switch to Fairtrade 

Standards at Daniel’s banana plantation.

Background notes for teachers 

Fairtrade bananas – how it works 

One in three bananas in the UK are 

Fairtrade – that’s 1.2 billion bananas 

each year. The Fairtrade Foundation 

works with people in the banana business 

to make sure that 22,000 plantation 

owners and workers are getting a fair 

deal, in West Africa, South-East Asia, the 

Caribbean and Latin America. 

People sometimes ask what the ‘banana 

split’ is for a Fairtrade banana, to 

compare with the costs in this game. But 

for a number of reasons, it’s complicated 

to compare. The amount a Fairtrade 

banana farmer gets varies from one place 

to another, depending on local costs. 

There’s also a difference in how profits 

are shared from bananas exported from 

small farms or large plantations. 

Producers may not actually make more 

profit per banana, but they do benefit 

from better conditions instead. 

Fairtrade products typically used to cost a 

little more for consumers, to reflect 

higher wages, but this is no longer always 

so. In the case of bananas, some 

supermarkets are selling loose Fairtrade 

bananas as cheaply as standard ones due 

to intense competition between 

supermarket chains over prices. 

This creates serious problems at the 

heart of the banana business. Bananas 

are being sold at a much cheaper price by 

supermarkets while the cost of producing 

bananas is increasing, making it harder 

and harder for people who grow our 

bananas to make a living. 

The discussion with pupils will focus on 

fairness, on conditions for workers, and 

on our role as global neighbours. Too 

often in poor countries, workers are 

exploited, operate in unsafe conditions 

and do not earn enough to meet their 

basic needs. 

Fairtrade helps banana farmers and 

workers build a more stable future by 

offering three important advantages: 

1. A minimum price 

The amount producers get for their 

bananas often goes up and down, but for 

Fairtrade producers it will never go below 

a certain price. This means the producers 

can plan ahead, whatever the cost in the 

supermarkets. 

2. A top-up (Fairtrade Premium) 

Producers receive a top-up per box of 

bananas, which they must use to invest 

in their business or give to their workers 

for community projects. An extra dollar 

per box builds up to buy a school block 

for workers’ children, a clinic or a clean 

water facility. (E.g. if a small farm of 1.3 

hectares produces 67 boxes of bananas 

per week, that’s $67, about £55 a week.) 

For plantation workers, some of this can 

be used for cash payments. 

3. Good working conditions 

(Fairtrade Standards) 

For workers on larger plantations, 

Fairtrade Standards help improve working 

conditions and protect workers’ rights. 

This means people stay safe at work, can 

join a union, and get a living wage. 

Find out more 

cafod.org.uk 

fairtrade.org.uk 

bananalink.org.uk 

Adapted from a game originally published by Christian 

Aid. Data correct as of January 2017. Illustrator: Garry 

Lambert. Charity no. 1160384 and a company limited by 

guarantee no. 9387398.

ROUND ONE: Roles for producing a non-Fairtrade banana. 

Mireya 

Banana 

worker 

ROUND ONE: I work hard on a farm packing bananas into 

boxes all day. Because my pay is low I worry about how to 

keep my kids in school, pay the doctor and buy enough food. 

. 

My hours here are very long. Worse, there 

are nasty chemicals on the bananas, which 

make us sick. We want the boss to stop using 

them, but he says they help the bananas 

grow and keep bugs off. 

We’re scared to ask for better conditions 

because we don’t want to lose our jobs. The 

boss needs us, he should look after us. It’s 

not fair. 

Daniel 

Plantation 

owner 

ROUND ONE: My workers think I’m rich. But running a 

plantation costs so much. I have to pay for the land, and for 

wages, including training my workers. 

I have to buy tools and machinery, and expensive chemicals to 

help the bananas grow and keep off bugs. 

The price Tom pays for my bananas can suddenly drop, then I 

lose money. Supermarkets in Europe are always pushing for 

lower prices. I am also worried about climate change; my 

bananas can be damaged if there are storms and high winds. I’m 

afraid I could go bust.

Frank 

Shipper 

ROUND ONE: I own a shipping company and importers like Tom pay 

me to transport their bananas to Europe. He has to pay me well 

because ships cost such a lot to buy and run. Think how much 

fuel I have to put in my huge ships! 

We need big fridges on board to stop the green bananas 

from getting too ripe before they arrive. The fridges 

are very important, but really expensive. I also have 

to pay to keep my ship in port at both ends – 

it’s like paying for parking a massive car. 

. 

Tom 

Importer 

dfhd 

ROUND ONE: I buy bananas from farmers overseas and sell to 

supermarkets. I arrange for ships to transport the bananas, and 

then I get them trucked to big warehouses to be ripened. Then I 

need more trucks to get to the shops - that’s a lot of costs! I also 

sometimes have to make a payment called a tariff for the bananas 

to be allowed into Europe. 

The farmers and the supermarkets depend on me. I 

have to keep the chain going, buying from one and 

selling to the other. The supermarkets always 

want to pay less but the farmers need more 

money. I’m stuck in the middle! 

Ayah 

Supermarket 

buyer 

Importer 

and ripener 

ROUND ONE: I buy fruit and vegetables for a UK supermarket chain. 

Bananas are really important for us, because so many people buy 

them. 13 million bananas are sold in the UK every day! 

One of the other chains has just lowered their price for loose 

bananas to 11p each. We can’t make a profit at this price, in 

fact we’ll lose money, but if we don’t match the price we could 

lose customers. 

I’m always trying to persuade Tom the importer 

to sell to me for a lower cost, but he says he 

can’t pay the banana producers any less. The 

supermarket will just have to lose money on 

bananas, and make it up on other products. We 

need money to pay our rent, wages, lighting, 

transport, uniforms, advertising and many other things!

ROUND TWO: Use these role cards to debate a Fairtrade switch. 

Mireya 

Banana 

worker 

ROUND TWO: I wish we had the Fairtrade sticker. 

To get it, Daniel the boss must protect us from 

chemicals that make us sick, treat us well and pay 

us enough to live on. He’ll be checked up on to 

make sure he keeps his promises. 

We will get an extra $1 for every box of 

bananas. It’s called the ‘Fairtrade Premium’. 

This goes to us workers to pay for things 

we need. We can decide if we want to save 

up for a school block, a health clinic or a clean 

water storage tank, for example. 

We would also be allowed to join a workers’ 

group called a union, to talk about our problems. It 

means we can back each other up and ask for 

things we need. Our lives would be a lot better! 

Daniel 

Plantation 

owner 

ROUND TWO: Mireya has got me thinking. Maybe we should 

be a Fairtrade plantation. I’ll have to persuade Tom though, he 

has to promise never to give me less than the minimum 

Fairtrade price, whatever the world banana price is. He also has 

to top up with an extra $1 per box to help my workers, so they 

can save up for things to improve their lives. 

I’ll have to spend more at the start to give them the right safety 

equipment, but if they don’t get hurt or sick so often they can 

work better. We may even be able to produce more bananas. 

The Fairtrade people will help me to plan ahead, and give me 

advice about climate change. Hmmm… won’t it cost me more 

though? I’m not sure.

Frank 

Shopper, dad 

Shipper 

F 

r 

a 

n 

k 

ROUND TWO: I’m looking for Fairtrade bananas but they 

don’t have any left in my supermarket today. I’d like to know 

that banana workers are treated fairly so I always look for 

that little sticker when I’m buying bananas – and other things 

like coffee, chocolate and sugar too. 

That way I know that I’m doing my bit as a global neighbour 

to people in poorer countries who work really hard to bring 

fruit to my family. We have so much more than they do. 

I’ve explained it to my kids, so they know about making 

bananas fair. 

I’m going to ask the manager why they haven’t got enough 

Fairtrade bananas! Otherwise I’ll go to another supermarket. 

It’s the right thing to do. 

Tom 

Importer 

my costs. 

ROUND TWO: Daniel wants to switch to Fairtrade, and the 

supermarkets say their customers are asking for Fairtrade 

bananas. I’ll have to promise never to go below a certain 

price, even if other costs go up. Then there’s the Fairtrade 

Premium, that extra dollar a box can mean 10% extra for 

me. Can I manage? I’m not sure. 

I can see the point though. If Daniel’s farm 

is running better, he’s more likely to have 

enough bananas to sell to me every 

harvest. That means I have a sure supply. 

With a Fairtrade deal, Ayah at the 

supermarket is more likely to keep buying 

from me. That means a more secure 

future for all of us. 

Ayah 

Supermarket 

buyer 

ROUND TWO: I think we need more supplies of Fairtrade 

bananas. Shoppers keep asking for them, they really do 

seem to care about making bananas fair. More and more 

people use their power as shoppers to make sure that the 

people who produce our food are safe and well treated. 

Also, it is good publicity for us to be seen to be doing the right 

thing. It makes good business sense, but it’s true that we 

sometimes have to sell our bananas at a loss. 

I’ll ask Tom to get us more Fairtrade suppliers, 

but I’ll have to keep pushing him down on 

those costs. We can’t let prices move up when 

we’re losing money on bananas already. I do 

care about poor farmers - but I’ve got to 

meet my targets. I’m not sure.

Banana split game

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