Did you know the Panama Canal was built thanks to bananas?

In the late 19th century, building the Panama Canal was considered a suicide mission. The French project had collapsed after the deaths of thousands of workers and massive financial losses. The world believed that joining the two oceans was an impossible dream. However, the key to the success of this titanic engineering feat came not just from architects' blueprints, but from the logistics of a fruit company.

The Logistics of the Impossible

At that time, the United Fruit Company (UFCO) had already mastered the art of what is now considered "impossible": transporting a fruit as delicate as the banana from the thick tropical jungle to dinner tables in New York, keeping its freshness intact.

This logistical mastery was the silent engine behind the Canal. The company already possessed thousands of miles of railroads and a communication network that American engineers used as a foundation to move tons of earth and medical supplies. Without that pre-existing infrastructure designed for fruit, the Canal would have taken decades longer to complete.

More than Transport: A Matter of Health

The great enemy in Panama was not the rock, but the mosquito. Yellow fever and malaria decimated work crews. The UFCO, which operated hospitals and research centers to protect its own employees on the plantations, provided critical knowledge on hygiene and pest control in tropical climates.

The science that kept those harvesting the fruit healthy was the same that allowed the Canal workers to finish the greatest construction work of the 20th century.

From the Source to Excellence

Today, at Disfruta™, we inherit that same passion for precision logistics. We know that delivering gourmet products—from the delicacy of premium vanilla to the freshness of our citrus fruits—requires the same level of respect for the source and rigor in transportation as those 1904 pioneers.

The history of the Panama Canal reminds us that behind every great achievement, there is a perfect supply chain and an unwavering commitment to the quality of the land..