Measurement in everyday life

We grow sub-tropical bananas in Carnarvon. Due to the growing environment our bananas are smaller and have thinner skins. As a result we need to package our bananas (in 750g bags) to protect them. As a co-operative we pack and market on behalf of grower members.
Currently bananas cannot be sold by number, they need to be sold by weight. To allow for loss of weight in the ripening process, the minimum amount of weight we pack into a 750g bag is 790g. However often the weight is just below 790 and we need to add a whole banana, resulting in the weight of the bag being over 890 grams. As producers we are giving away around 150 grams per package – around 18% extra. This equates to around 30,000 cartons of bananas a year that our growers are not being paid for due to overpack.
Quality issues also arise out of adding a single banana to make up the weight of hand. A single banana added to the hand creates quality issues as the banana can move around and mark and bruise the other bananas in the bag. In addition single bananas sometimes ripen at a different rate to the rest of the hand. This results in a quality issue called “mixed ripes” which is cause for a quality rejection once the consignment reaches the supermarket.
Similarly, if you need to remove a banana from the hand, as it is overweight by too much, then this causes sap to flow which creates a sticky brown and unsightly resin in the bag, it is perfectly safe but not visually appealing. Breaking a banana from another hand to top up a bag causes the same issue.

Because bananas removed from the hand have less “wood” on the stalk end, they are more likely to get stem end rots or moulds. This can create quality issues including rejection by the retailer, wastage in store and consumer complaints.
I am happy to provide photographs and more information on this process if it is required.
The issue with bananas is that they come in bunches and are broken down into hands (as opposed to singular fruit which is more easily sorted and weighed automatically). The way we break up the hands is in approximate size (estimated to be above 790 grams by sight) and also to remove any bananas that don't meet specification. This is done whilst the bananas are in the water, which stems the sap flow. This results in bananas being broken down into a variety of sized hands.
Once we pack into the bags each is weighed and then bananas are added or removed as required. In addition to the quality issues raised above, this additional step costs additional labour and therefore costs to our business. As price takers in the commodity banana industry we are often unable to recoup additional costs to our business or for loss of product.

Most other commodities in horticulture, including cucumbers, avocadoes, mangoes, all apples, all stone fruit, kiwifruit, cauliflower, cabbage, celery, lettuce, broccoli, zucchini etc etc can be sold as "each".
If the system could be changed to include bananas on this list it would provide us with the flexibility to sell bananas by number in packages - as they are for other products - this will enable us to pack bananas into packages that people are asking us for and whole hands which alleviates many quality issues. We have customer feedback that people would like the option of buying 3 or 4 or 5 bananas but we are limited now that we can only pack to a weight specification. The problem of the loose banana damaging the other bananas, sap loss, poor shelf life and the mixed ripe issue would disappear if we could pack into packages by number of bananas. Although the bulk of bananas would still be sold by the kilo, this would provide consumers with the option of purchasing packaged bananas by number, and provide consumers with more choice at a retail level. It would also in increase the quality of our offering. Increasing consumer satisfaction.

Customers are already used to buying many other products by number, this would just be an additional product to be added to the list. The option in store is still available for consumers to weigh the product and determine if they see good value for money or indeed if they wish to purchase loose bananas by the kilo. There is already a precedent with many convenience stores, petrol stations, canteens, cafes, lunchbars etc selling bananas by each, this would just be extending this to the retail environment.

For packaged fruit and vegetables (as opposed to mechanised products) where there is human intervention there should be some scope for allowances.

As outlined above for the reasons described I believe bananas should be added to the list of products that can be sold by number. It is an anomaly that other products can be sold by number and bananas are not. This would provide consumers with more choice of packaged bananas.

As outlined above, the current process adds cost to our business (18% of fruit given away), costs in the process (each bag needing to be weighed and bananas added and removed) and costs in the quality resulting in poor on shelf quality, rejections of consignments and consumer complaints.