The Port of Hueneme’s 13th Annual Banana Festival set a second consecutive attendance record as nearly 19,000 guests came to the Port for a celebratory day of live music, banana treats, tours, a classic car show, and family-friendly fun. This year’s theme, “Gateway to the World,” highlighted the Port’s role in connecting local consumers to global goods and markets.

Festivalgoers had the opportunity to find banana treats from a variety of local vendors while enjoying live music including headliner Twisted Gypsy. Bus and Boat tours gave visitors vision to the inner workings of a busy operating port and revealed how the Port of Hueneme moves much more than bananas. While bananas are big business for the Port with more than 5 billion coming in per year, Hueneme is also the only West Coast port authorized to import Peruvian blueberries. Other commodities that come across its docks include avocados, melons, pineapples, and liquid fertilizer.

The Port of Hueneme began importing automobiles in 1977 and continues to bring some of the world’s most recognizable brands from Asia, Europe, and Latin America to American roads. That legacy is celebrated at the Banana Festival’s classic car show, which this year put over 130 autos on display.

“We chose Gateway to the World for our theme this year to celebrate the great connections the Port facilitates,” said Jason Hodge, President of the Oxnard Harbor District Board of Commissioners. “We have vibrant sister port relationships and green shipping corridor partnerships all around the world, and the trade we bring in from so many different countries stimulates the economy while bringing other tangible benefits to the community.”

One of those Sister Port relationships is with the Port of Paita, Peru. Attendees were encouraged to bring donations to fill a shipping container that the Port is sending to supply an orphanage in Cusco and four nearby villages. Donations will be accepted at the Port during regular business hours until the end of November. Runa Peru, an acclaimed Peruvian dance troupe, was part of the celebration. They were joined by Consul General of Peru Jaime Casafranca, Ambassador Ricardo Santana Velázquez, Consul General/Representative of Mexico, and Ricardo Solares Archila, Counselor at Guatemala’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Those in this year’s crowd learned about the Port of Hueneme’s vital role as a key economic driver for Ventura County. By handling more than $18 billion in cargo each year, the Port—home of the World Trade Center Oxnard—connects California’s Central Coast with global trade partners to create jobs and economic opportunities throughout Ventura County and beyond.

For Kristin Decas, CEO & Port Director, the festival was a moment to both reflect and think about the future. “We honored our legacy here with an eye on what’s next,” she remarked. “Visitors today saw a Port in transition as we deploy over $200 million in grant funding to modernize infrastructure and fully electrify operations in the next three years. Today was about bringing people together to strengthen our community in pursuit of this future of opportunity, connection, and global trade.”