By George Henry, Gleaner Writer 
SPALDINGS, Clarendon:
AFTER A four-month absence from the market, plantains and bananas are slowly emerging in some areas. However, consumers are being asked to pay top dollar for the fruits.
Checks by Farmers Weekly with several small cultivators and market vendors in Manchester and Clarendon found small quantities of the fruits on sale, but at high prices.
At the Christiana and Spaldings markets in Manchester and Clarendon, respectively, vendors were seen selling an eight-hand bunch of green bananas for $500, while green plantains were being sold for as high as $30 per finger.
The price for ripe plantains was also high, as a small finger was being sold for between $35 and $40, up from $5 and $10 prior to the passage of Hurricane Ivan.
Despite the high prices, the vendors said sales were brisk. The same situation exists with ripe bananas. Vendors reported that ripe bananas were being sold for $20 per finger, up from $5 before the hurricane.
But farmers say it may take some time before the fruits become available in large quantities again as the hurricane did extensive damage to farms last September.
Isaac Cohen, who has been engaged in the production of bananas and plantains for more than three decades, said most of his plants were destroyed by Hurricane Ivan, but some of the trees have recovered and have started to bear fruit.
Similarly, Cecil Cameron's small plot of banana and plantain trees were destroyed by the hurricane. He said he would not be able to supply his many customers before April.
