In the Shadows of State and Capital: The United Fruit Company, Popular Struggles, and Agrarian Restructuring in Ecuador, 1900-1995 (review)
The United Fruit Company has earned the justified ire of scholars throughout the Americas for its ruthless conduct during the era of the "banana republics." Although UFCO came to Ecuador in the 1920s, later than its "classic" period in Central America, the enclave pattern of plantation production parallels its behavior elsewhere. To be sure, differences existed, in that bananas came to Ecuador in the wake of the collapse of the cacao industry and UFCO never gained the political influence that it enjoyed in countries such as Guatemala. Moreover, Ecuadorian banana workers demonstrated considerable success in gaining concessions from the multinational giant, often with state support. However, in both regions, contract labor eventually replaced the enclave plantation system, giving UFCO a more "secure" economic environment for banana production than it had enjoyed early in the 20th century.