Bye, bye, bananas

Found on Washington Post on Sunday, 06 December 2015
Browse Science

In the mid 1900s, the most popular banana in the world—a sweet, creamy variety called Gros Michel grown in Latin America—all but disappeared from the planet. At the time, it was the only banana in the world that could be exported. But a fungus, known as Panama Disease, which first appeared in Australia in the late 1800s, changed that after jumping continents.

Now, half a century later, a new strain of the disease is threatening the existence of the Cavendish, the banana that replaced the Gros Michel as the world's top banana export, representing 99 percent of the market, along with a number of banana varieties produced and eaten locally around the world.

The Cavendish is less desirable, more susceptible to other diseases, has a tendency to bruise, doesn't ripen easily or last very long before spoiling, and is "lamentably bland," as Mike Peed wrote in a 2011 piece for the New Yorker.

Biodiversity, ever heard of it? Obviously companies like Dole and Chiquita haven't. Of course neither did Monsanto. That's why as many different varieties as possible should be cultivated; not only would it reduce the effects of a disease, but it also would make shopping much more interesting.