After the creation of the United Fruit Company in 1899, the new company began to aggressively expand its holdings and operations throughout Central America and the Caribbean. At the time of consolidation, the United Fruit Company held a total of 38,000 acres of land for banana plantations.¹ These plantations were primarily in Costa Rica and Colombia, with each home to over 10,000 acres of banana land. As the United Fruit Company further established itself, it began to expand its media presence and its business presence in other countries, including Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama.²

United Fruit Company and Media

Immediately after the creation of the United Fruit Company, the company began to invest in propaganda in order to increase profits and general public acceptance. The first piece of official propaganda published by the company was “The Golden Caribbean; A Winter Visit to the Republics of Colombia, Costa Rica, Spanish Honduras, Belize, and the Spanish Main via Boston and New Orleans” by H.R. Blaney.³ This was a 206 page pamphlet that described the United Fruit Company’s activities in the listed countries and provided illustrations that painted the company as an example of American benevolence and ingenuity. Over the course of the 20^th Century, the United Fruit Company continue to expand and become known (perhaps even infamous) for its propaganda and publicity activities.

United Fruit Company in Costa Rica

Minor C. Keith began his first business endeavors in Costa Rica in the 1870s with the construction of a transcontinental railroad through the country, and through this, he began to cultivate bananas along the Caribbean lowlands of the country. During the early years of the United Fruit Company, this region continued to be significant. The Caribbean Lowlands became the primary location of banana plantations in Costa Rica.⁴ Because of a low labor supply, likely because of working conditions rather than population as some suggest, Afro-Caribbean laborers were imported to work on these plantations. Banana exports continued to rise until 1914.⁵

The creation of the Untied Fruit Company increased exports from Costa Rica as increased capital and investments led to increased productivity.⁶ The company began experimenting with banana refrigeration ships in 1901, and by 1904, they had become a standard component of the banana trade.⁷ Together, these factors resulted in a significant increase in banana exports from Costa Rica. In 1910, the government of Costa Rica and the United Fruit Company signed a contract that implemented a one cent tax on each stem exported from the country.⁸ However, the outbreak of World War One in 1914, resulted in decreasing exports as the world’s industrial economies prepared for war.

United Fruit Company in Colombia

Before the arrival of Minor C. Keith in the 1880s, bananas were cultivated primarily in the northern part of Colombia, in a region called Magdalena.⁹ The primary variety of banana cultivated in this region was the infamous Gros Michel, which was brought to Colombia by Jose Manuel Gonzalez, a cultivator from Santa Marta. The banana was originally grown in Colombia for internal consumption, but after the arrival of Keith, this situation was to change dramatically.

Several factors led to Untied Fruit Company growing influence in Colombia. Keith first began operation in Colombia in the early 1890s, when he bought land in the Magdalena region.¹⁰ He ultimately bought over 12,500 acres, and through this process, formed the Colombian Land Company, which was a subsidiary of the Tropical Trading and Transport Company. This land became a part of the United Fruit Company after the companies’ merger in 1899. In the same year, The United Fruit Company acquired control of the Colombian railroad, which significantly increased their ability to exert influence in the country.¹¹ From 1899-1902 a civil war in Colombia, known as the “Guerra de los Mil Dias” in Spanish and “The War of 1,000 Days” in English, was waged between conservative and liberal camps in the country.¹² The Conservative party took control of government after the war and adopted friendly policies towards foreign investment in order to stimulate economic growth. Thus, the United Fruit Company was able to take advantage of tax breaks, land concessions, and general governmental friendliness towards their expansion in Colombia.

As a result of the expansion of business enterprise during the first ten years of the 20^th century, banana exports increased about 500% from 1892 to 1905.¹³ Additionally, the business model of the United Fruit Company in Colombia reflected a vertical integration system in which the company relied heavily on local growers for banana production. As a result, by 1910, local planters had increased production by 20-30%.¹⁴ The result was an economic and population boom in the Magdalena during this period because of both the increase in exports and migration of labor to the region.

United Fruit Company in Guatemala

The United Fruit Company began major investment and involvement in the country of Guatemala right after its foundation. The Guatemalan economy was dominated by coffee production, processing, and exportation during the early 20^th century.¹⁵ However, the United Fruit Company still managed to extend its influence and control into the country’s economy by way of the railroad.¹⁶ Railroad construction began in Guatemala in 1878 when the government hired Henry F.W., also known as Guillermo Nanne to oversee construction of a line from San Jose to Escuintia.¹⁷ Nanne was working with Minor Keith on the construction of the Costa Rican railroad at the time of his hire.

Shortly after the consolidation of the United Fruit Company, Keith visited Guatemala to assess the railroad situation and to investigate ways in which the company could become invested in the country.¹⁸ He bought land along the Northern Railway and began plant a small number of banana plantations. On January 12, 1904, a contract was signed between Jose Flamenco, the Minister of Development, Percival Farquhar (Keith’s representative), and William C. Van Horne (Keith’s associate). This contract stipulated that if the United Fruit Company completed the Northern Railroad from El Rancho to Guatemala City, they would be paid in a grant of property from the government, rather than in money. This grant of land included railroad from Puerto Barrios to El Rancho, all physical property along the line, and all adjacent land along the sides of the railroad.¹⁹ The only stipulations made by the Guatemalan government was that the contractors could not sell the railroad or any of its property, and that the government would have the right to buy back the railroad after a period of 99 years. Thus, through this contract, the Untied Fruit Company effectively gained control of the Guatemalan rail system.

In 1906, Guatemala signed a contract with Victor M. Cutter, a future president of the United Fruit Company, to construct small segment of rail to connect the Northern Railway with Guatemala City. By 1908, the railroad was complete, and the United Fruit Company came into the possession of 270,000 acres of land some 26,000 of which were dedicated to banana production.

United Fruit Company in Cuba

When the United Fruit Company was created, the Boston Fruit Company contributed the land that it had bought in Cuba near the Banes Bay.²⁰ Unfortunately, the production of bananas in this region was not productive, so the United Fruit Company decided to utilize this land in another way. Their interests turned to the production of sugar and the acquisition of control over the Cuban rail system.

On April 25, 1900, in Jersey City, New Jersey, the Cuba Company was incorporated.²¹ One of the incorporators who later became the president and chairman of the Cuba Company Board of Directors was Sir William Van Horne. This is the same Van Horne who had worked with Keith during the signing of the railroad contract in Guatemala.²² Furthermore, Percival Farquhar, Van Horne’s assistant who also had significant business interests in Cuba, acted as Keith’s official representative in the Guatemalan railroad contract. The United Fruit Company and the Cuba Company were not officially connected to one another, but their leaders were still very much interconnected. The purpose of this newly formed Cuba Company was to construct new transportation and communication infrastructure throughout the island. In 1900, construction of the Cuban railroad began, and foreign investment was encouraged in order to make the railroads profitable. A few American companies, including the United Fruit Company, were encouraged to invest in Cuba.

In August of 1898, the United States and Spain signed an agreement to end the hostilities that would become known as the Spanish-American War, and the United States began occupation of Cuba.²³ At this point, American companies started investing in sugar production on the island.²⁴ The United Fruit Company built two sugar mills, El Central Boston in 1901, and El Central Preston in 1904. These mills were built in the latifundio plantation style that would characterize 20^th century sugar production.

Other United Fruit Company Activities

The United Fruit Company also established itself beyond the countries listed above. The company extended it’s influence wherever possible in Central American and the Caribbean.²⁵ These activities all took place during the American anti-trust and anti-monopoly era, so the United Fruit Company frequently found themselves in the courtroom.

One of the anti-trust suits brought against the United Fruit Company was the American Banana Company (ABC) vs. the United Fruit Company (UFC) (1909).²⁶ The plaintiff (ABC) argued that the UFC had invested in various countries throughout South America with the intent of limiting competition in order to prevent other companies from investing. One example the plaintiff provided was the Untied Fruit Company’s involvement in Panama. In 1903, an investor named McConnell bought a banana planation in Panama. In 1904, after Panama declared independence, the UFC promptly bought McConnell out. Beyond that, the UFC was building railroads in Colombia, exerting strong influence over the government of Costa Rica, and building plantations in other countries. Because of the UFC’s actions, the ABC believed it was being deprived of land for plantations, railways, and access to other valuable resources.

Despite strong evidence that the United Fruit Company was monopolizing resources in this region, they won the suit because their actions took place outside of the United States and were therefore outside of the scope of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act and the jurisdiction of the United States.²⁷ Furthermore, in the case of Costa Rica, the court determined that the United Fruit Company did not act illegally, as the government of Costa Rica gave them complete authority to control railways and resources. Because the United Fruit Company undertook most of their monopolizing actions outside of the United States, they were able to deflect the American legal system and effectively create a monopoly throughout the Caribbean and Central America.

1 Samuel L. Crowther, The Romance and Rise of the Tropics (Garden City: Doubleday, Doran and Company Inc.).

2 Maurice P. Brungardt, “La United Fruit Company en Colombia, Innovar: Revista de Ciencias Administratras y Sociales, no. 5 (enero-junio de 1995): 108.

3 H.R. Blaney, ““The Golden Caribbean; A Winter Visit to the Republics of Colombia, Costa Rica, Spanish Honduras, Belize, and the Spanish Main via Boston and New Orleans,” Lee and Shepherd: 1900.

4 J Clarence F. Jones and Paul C. Morrison, “Evolution of the Banana Industry of Costa Rica,” Economic Geography 28, No. 1 (Jan., 1952): 1-19.

5 Jesse T. Palmer, “The Banana in Caribbean Trade,” Economic Geography 8, No. 3 (Jul., 1932): 265.

6 Jones and Morrison, 5.

7 Palmer, 266.

8 Ronald N. Harpelle, “Racism and Nationalism in the Creation of Costa Rica’s Pacific Coast Banana Enclave,” The Americas 56, no. 3 (January 2000): 32.

9 Brungardt, 109.

10 Marcello Buchelli, “Enforcing Business Contracts in South America, United Fruit Company and Colombian Banana Planters in the 20^th Century, The Business History Review 78, no. 2 (Summer 2004): 181-212.

11 Brungardt, 112.

12 Vanegas Isidro, “Lo Envitable y lo Foruito de la Violencia y Politica. El Liberalism y la Guerra de los Mil Dias, Memoria y Sociedad 20, no. 40 (enero-junio 2006): 150-168.

13 Brungardt, 113.

14 Buchelli, 188.

15 Virginia Adams, “Coffee Farms Architecture and Cultural Landscapes in Guatemala, 1860-1950, Material Culture 38, no. 2 (Fall 2006): 1-18.

16 Crowther, 264.

17 Delmer G. Ross, “The Construction of the Interoceanic Railroad of Guatemala, The Americas. 33, no. 3 (January 1977): 430-456.

18 Ross, 448.

19 Crowther, 265.

20 Crowther, 172

21 Juan C. Santamarina, “THe Cuba Company and the Expansion of American Business in Cuba 1898-195,” The Business History Review 74, “The Cuba Issue” (Spring 2000): 41-83.

22 Ross, 448.

23 Mary Speck, “Prosperity, Progress, and Wealth: Cuban Enterprise During the Early Republic, 1902-1927, Cuban Studies 26, (2005):52.

24 Felipe J. Prestamo, et al., “The Architecture of American Sugar Mills: The United Fruit Company,” THe Jouranl of Decorative and Propaganda Arts 22, “Cuba Theme Issue” (1996): 62-81.

25 Brungardt, 108.

26 “American Banana Company vs. United Fruit Company,” The American Journal of International Law 3, no. 4 (October 1909): 1006-1001.

27 “American Banana Company vs. United Fruit Company,” 1008.