Bunches of bananas, Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica.
It’s easy to take bananas for granted. Walk into any American supermarket, even one with low supplies, and you’ll find them. Bananas top the list of fresh fruits sold in this country (the average American eats nearly 26 pounds a year) and are among the most widely consumed fruits in the world, but despite their sunny appearance, their future is uncertain.
Bananas have a lot going for them. Portable, inexpensive, and versatile, they’re easy to eat right out of the skin, but they also pair well with other ingredients, adding sweetness and texture to muffins, pancakes, smoothies, curries, and fritters. And they’re a nutritional powerhouse. They’re loaded with potassium and fiber, rich in magnesium, vitamin B6 (which supports neurological function), and vitamin C (which boosts immunity), and they even promote sleep by helping the body produce melatonin.
The social and economic impacts of this fruit are just as important. Bananas are a vital source of livelihood for farmers and farm workers in the tropics. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates that the cultivation of this plant represents about three-quarters of the total monthly income of small farmers in the most productive countries. The fruit helps supplement the diets of food-insecure communities, while the leaves of the plant are frequently used to package, store and cook other ingredients. You can even make soap from the ashes of dried bark.
Bananas are also steeped in myth and cultural beliefs. In India, they’re planted in sacred areas and used in fertility rituals, while the Quran mentions them as a fruit of paradise. But not everything goes smoothly; some sailors believe the fruit is cursed and that bringing it on board is a sure way to attract misfortune. (Maybe they’ve seen one too many Minions movies.)
A courageous traveler
Botanically, the banana plant is actually a giant herb and its fruit is classified as a berry. This tropical crop originated in Southeast Asia before gradually spreading westward through Asia and Africa. According to Alan Davidson The Oxford Guide to FoodPortuguese soldiers brought bananas from West Africa to the Canary Islands in the early 1400s. From this Spanish archipelago located off the coast of Morocco, the fruits crossed the pond, carried by missionaries to the Caribbean and Latin America, currently the world’s leading exporting region.
Wild bananas were full of black seeds, but the domestication of this plant gave rise to the seedless varieties we know today. Although there are actually more than a thousand varieties, including plantains, the largest, starchiest and most common in cooking, almost half of the bananas currently grown belong to the Cavendish family, the ones you’ll find most often at your local store.
Until the 1950s, Gros Michel was the preferred variety, but when a fungal disease nearly wiped it out, Cavendish slipped to first place, prized for its resistance to storm damage (a factor not negligible on tropical farms where it is grown) and its ability to produce a large volume of fruit that can survive transportation. As with most easily transportable fruits, flavor wasn’t the main reason for its rise.
There are, however, different varieties within the Cavendish family, and the composition of the soil and the time of harvest of the bunches also have an influence on the quality of the fruit. The Canary Islands are still a major producer, and there is even a small museum dedicated to the crop on the island of Gran Canaria, located on a working farm called Hacienda La Rekompensa. As the Spanish archipelago was shaped by volcanic activity, the soil has a high mineral content and the most popular local banana variety is smaller and sweeter than those produced in other regions. Canarian growers also allow the fruit to ripen on the plant for much longer, which enhances its flavour.
The Hacienda La Rekompensa banana farm on the Spanish island of Gran Canaria
Too much of a good thing
Despite their many positives, bananas could use a little help with their image. With their year-round availability, we never have a chance to miss them or celebrate their annual return in the same way fruits like peaches and plums herald the arrival of summer. But the challenges facing the industry are far more existential than just marketing.
The fruit is often grown in large-scale monoculture farms. Instead of relying on natural diversity and techniques, these farms remove plant cover and degrade the soil, forcing farmers to resort to chemical fertilizers and pesticides, which endanger local waterways as well. as the health of workers and surrounding communities.
The low price of conventionally grown bananas has contributed to equally low wages and deplorable working conditions. The term “banana republic,” which long predates the American clothing giant, refers to the stranglehold that fruit multinationals have had on the economies and governments of producing countries in the Americas, and the horrific practices that have resulted from this concentration of power.
The other major challenge is the biology of the plant. Bananas are propagated by cuttings, meaning each plant is genetically identical to its parent. In nature, biodiversity means protection, so the Cavendish’s dominance leaves the industry vulnerable to the same types of fungal diseases that wiped out the Gros Michel. The latest threat is Fusarium Tropical Race 4 (TR4), “the most aggressive and destructive fungus in the history of agriculture.”,» according to the FAO. Already present in 21 producing countries, the TR4 arrived in Latin America in 2019.
Working to protect bananas and farming communities
To prevent possible extinction of the fruit, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, have collaborated with the Millennial Seed Bank and the Crop Trust on a project that collects and protects wild relatives of bananas and other important food crops. The plan is to save genetic material that would be essential to breeding a new variety if the Cavendish succumbed to the disease.
Meanwhile, in the case of current production, non-profit organizations like Rainforest Alliance and Fairtrade certify farms that have voluntarily complied with each non-profit’s particular criteria, which range from environmental protection and local communities to support higher prices for farmers. In return, approved farms can use the corresponding certification label to market their product.
Progress on social and environmental responsibility has been slower than critics would like, and climate change will only multiply the challenges, further testing farmers’ ability to adapt. Clearly, no single initiative will solve all of the sector’s problems, but if the world hopes to ensure the survival of the crop, perhaps we should start by showing a little more respect for bananas, and for the environment and farmers who produce them.
