Has the future of bananas gone bananas?
A recent report by Christian Aid has highlighted the damaging effect climate change poses to the global banana industry, stressing that the future of the banana plant is in critical danger.
Bananas are the most popular fruit worldwide, and the fourth most consumed crop overall. For over 400 million people, the banana makes up 15-27% of their daily calorie intake.
The banana is very susceptible to devastation from erratic weather, as this can lead to destroyed plantations and the rapid spread of lethal diseases.
Agricultural scientist Professor James Dale of Queensland University of Technology has spent decades researching bananas, and common diseases which affect the Cavendish banana, the most commercially popular banana, such as Panama disease. Dale along with a team of scientists developed the world’s first genetically modified banana which recently received approval for consumption.