Banana: Difference between revisions
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{{hatnote|For the plant genus to which bananas belong, see [[Musa (genus)|''Musa'' (genus)]]. For other uses, see [[Banana (disambiguation)]].}} |
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{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2012}} |
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[[File:Bananavarieties.jpg|thumb|right|Four varieties of banana fruit]] |
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[[File:Banana farm Chinawal.jpg|thumb|right|Banana farm at [[Chinawal]], India]] |
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A '''banana''' is an edible [[fruit]], botanically a [[berry]],<ref name=purdue1/><ref name=Armstrong/> produced by several kinds of large [[herbaceous]] [[flowering plant]]s in the [[genus]] ''[[Musa (genus)|Musa]]''.<ref name=MW/> (In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called [[Cooking plantain|plantains]].) The fruit is variable in size, color and firmness, but is usually elongated and curved, with soft flesh rich in [[starch]] covered with a rind which may be green, yellow, red, purple, or brown when ripe. The fruits grow in clusters hanging from the top of the plant. Almost all modern edible [[Parthenocarpy|parthenocarpic]] (seedless) bananas come from two wild species – ''[[Musa acuminata]]'' and ''[[Musa balbisiana]]''. The [[Binomial nomenclature|scientific names]] of most cultivated bananas are ''Musa acuminata'', ''Musa balbisiana'', and ''Musa'' × ''paradisiaca'' for the hybrid ''Musa acuminata'' × ''M. balbisiana'', depending on their [[genome|genomic]] constitution. The old scientific name ''Musa sapientum'' is no longer used. |
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''Musa'' species are native to tropical [[Indomalaya]] and [[Australia (continent)|Australia]], and are likely to have been first domesticated in [[Papua New Guinea]].<ref name=apscience/>{{sfn|Nelson|Ploetz|Kepler|2006}} They are grown in at least 107 countries,<ref name=fao/> primarily for their fruit, and to a lesser extent to make [[fiber]], [[banana wine]] and [[banana beer]] and as [[ornamental plant]]s. |
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Worldwide, there is no sharp distinction between "bananas" and "plantains". Especially in the Americas and Europe, "banana" usually refers to soft, sweet, dessert bananas, particularly those of the [[#Cavendish|Cavendish group]], which are the main exports from banana-growing countries. By contrast, [[List of banana cultivars|''Musa'' cultivar]]s with firmer, starchier fruit are called "plantains". In other regions, such as [[Southeast Asia]], many more kinds of banana are grown and eaten, so the simple two-fold distinction is not useful and is not made in local languages. |
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The term "banana" is also used as the common name for the plants which produce the fruit.<ref name=MW/> This can extend to other members of the genus ''Musa'' like the [[Musa coccinea|scarlet banana]] (''Musa coccinea''), [[Musa velutina|pink banana]] (''Musa velutina'') and the [[Fe'i banana]]s. It can also refer to members of the genus ''[[Ensete]]'', like the [[Ensete glaucum|snow banana]] (''Ensete glaucum'') and the economically important [[Ensete ventricosum|false banana]] (''Ensete ventricosum''). Both genera are classified under the banana family, [[Musaceae]]. |
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==Description== |
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[[File:Banana corm.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=Photo of a banana corm growing from loamy soil|A banana corm, about {{convert|25|cm|in|abbr=on|0}} across]] |
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[[File:M. acuminata x balbisiana.JPG|thumb|Banana [[inflorescence]], partially opened.]] |
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[[File:M. acuminata x balbisiana female flower detail.jpg|thumb|right|The female flowers (which can develop into fruit) have petals and other flower parts at the tip of the ovary (the ovary is "inferior").]] |
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[[File:Bananas white background.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Cavendish banana]] is the most common banana type sold.]] |
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The banana plant is the largest [[herbaceous]] flowering plant.<ref name=PicqINIB00/> All the above-ground parts of a banana plant grow from a structure usually called a "[[corm]]".{{sfn|Stover|Simmonds|1987|pp=5–9}} Plants are normally tall and fairly sturdy, and are often mistaken for [[tree]]s, but what appears to be a trunk is actually a "false stem" or [[pseudostem]]. Bananas grow in a wide variety of soils, as long as the soil is at least 60 cm deep, has good drainage and is not compacted.{{sfn|Stover|Simmonds|1987|p=212}} The leaves of banana plants are composed of a "stalk" ([[petiole (botany)|petiole]]) and a blade ([[lamina (botany)|lamina]]). The base of the petiole widens to form a sheath; the tightly packed sheaths make up the pseudostem, which is all that supports the plant. The edges of the sheath meet when it is first produced, making it tubular. As new growth occurs in the centre of the pseudostem the edges are forced apart.{{sfn|Stover|Simmonds|1987|pp=13–17}} Cultivated banana plants vary in height depending on the variety and growing conditions. Most are around {{convert|5|m|ft|abbr=on|0}} tall, with a range from 'Dwarf Cavendish' plants at around {{convert|3|m|ft|abbr=on|0}} to 'Gros Michel' at {{convert|7|m|ft|abbr=on|0}} or more.{{sfn|Nelson|Ploetz|Kepler|2006|p=26}}{{sfn|Ploetz|Kepler|Daniells|Nelson|2007|p=12}} Leaves are spirally arranged and may grow {{convert|2.7|m|ft}} long and {{convert|60|cm|ft|abbr=on}} wide.<ref name="purdue1"/> They are easily torn by the wind, resulting in the familiar frond look.<ref name=Greenearth/> |
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When a banana plant is mature, the corm stops producing new leaves and begins to form a flower spike or [[inflorescence]]. A stem develops which grows up inside the pseudostem, carrying the immature inflorescence until eventually it emerges at the top.{{sfn|Stover|Simmonds|1987|pp=9–13}} Each pseudostem normally produces a single inflorescence, also known as the "banana heart". (More are sometimes produced; an exceptional plant in the [[Philippines]] produced five.<ref name=ABS_CBN/>) After fruiting, the pseudostem dies, but offshoots will normally have developed from the base, so that the plant as a whole is [[perennial]]. In the plantation system of cultivation, only one of the offshoots will be allowed to develop in order to maintain spacing.{{sfn|Stover|Simmonds|1987|pp=244–247}} The inflorescence contains many [[bract]]s (sometimes incorrectly referred to as petals) between rows of flowers. The female flowers (which can develop into fruit) appear in rows further up the stem (closer to the leaves) from the rows of male flowers. The ovary is [[ovary (plants)|inferior]], meaning that the tiny petals and other flower parts appear at the tip of the ovary.{{sfn|Office of the Gene Technology Regulator|2008}} |
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The banana fruits develop from the banana heart, in a large hanging cluster, made up of tiers (called "hands"), with up to 20 fruit to a tier. The hanging cluster is known as a bunch, comprising 3–20 [[wikt:tier#noun 2|tier]]s, or commercially as a "banana stem", and can weigh {{convert|30|–|50|kg|lb}}. Individual banana fruits (commonly known as a banana or "finger") average {{convert|125|g|lb}}, of which approximately 75% is [[water]] and 25% dry matter.{{citation needed|date=January 2013}} |
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The fruit has been described as a "leathery berry".<ref name=Smit77/> There is a protective outer layer (a [[Peel (fruit)|peel]] or skin) with numerous long, thin strings (the [[phloem]] [[Vascular bundle|bundles]]), which run lengthwise between the skin and the [[Eating|edible]] inner portion. The inner part of the common yellow dessert variety can be split lengthwise into three sections that correspond to the inner portions of the three [[carpel]]s by manually deforming the unopened fruit.<ref name=Wark04/> In cultivated varieties, the seeds are diminished nearly to non-existence; their remnants are tiny black specks in the interior of the fruit.<ref name=Simm62/> |
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Bananas are naturally slightly [[Radioactive decay|radioactive]],<ref name=Brod78/><ref name=ChemAbout/> more so than most other fruits, because of their potassium content and the small amounts of the isotope [[potassium-40]] found in naturally occurring potassium.<ref name=CassWu07/> The [[banana equivalent dose]] of radiation is sometimes used in nuclear communication to compare radiation levels and exposures.<ref name=ETR/> |
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==Etymology== |
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The word banana is thought to be of West African origin, possibly from the [[Wolof language|Wolof]] word ''[[wiktionary:banaana|banaana]]'', and passed into English via Spanish or Portuguese.<ref name=OEtymD/> |
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==Taxonomy== |
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[[File:Banana Tree 01.jpg|right|thumb|upright|Banana 'tree' showing fruit and inflorescence.]] |
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The genus ''[[Musa (genus)|Musa]]'' was created by [[Carl Linnaeus]] in 1753.<ref name=WCSP_Musa/> The name may be derived from [[Antonius Musa]], physician to the Emperor [[Augustus]], or Linnaeus may have adapted the [[Arabic]] word for banana, ''[[wiktionary:موز|mauz]]''.<ref name=HyamPank95/> ''Musa'' is in the family [[Musaceae]]. The [[APG III system]] assigns Musaceae to the order [[Zingiberales]], part of the [[commelinid]] clade of the [[monocots|monocotyledonous flowering plants]]. Some 70 species of ''Musa'' were recognized by the [[World Checklist of Selected Plant Families]] {{asof|2013|January|lc=yes}};<ref name=WCSP_Musa/> several produce edible fruit, while others are cultivated as ornamentals.<ref name=Bail16/> |
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The classification of cultivated bananas has long been a problematic issue for taxonomists. Linnaeus originally placed bananas into two species based only on their uses as food: ''Musa sapientum'' for dessert bananas and ''Musa paradisiaca'' for [[Plantain (true)|plantain]]s. Subsequently further species names were added. However, this approach proved inadequate to address the sheer number of [[cultivar]]s existing in the primary center of diversity of the genus, [[Southeast Asia]]. Many of these cultivars were given names which proved to be [[Synonym (taxonomy)|synonyms]].{{sfn|Valmayor|Jamaluddin|Silayoi|Kusumo|2000}} |
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In a series of papers published in 1947 onwards, Ernest Cheesman showed that Linnaeus's ''Musa sapientum'' and ''Musa paradisiaca'' were actually cultivars and descendants of two wild seed-producing species, ''[[Musa acuminata]]'' and ''[[Musa balbisiana]]'', both first described by [[Luigi Aloysius Colla]].<ref name=DRC/> He recommended the abolition of Linnaeus's species in favor of reclassifying bananas according to three morphologically distinct groups of cultivars – those primarily exhibiting the botanical characteristics of ''Musa balbisiana'', those primarily exhibiting the botanical characteristics of ''Musa acuminata'', and those with characteristics that are the combination of the two.{{sfn|Valmayor|Jamaluddin|Silayoi|Kusumo|2000}} Researchers Norman Simmonds and Ken Shepherd proposed a genome-based nomenclature system in 1955. This system eliminated almost all the difficulties and inconsistencies of the earlier classification of bananas based on assigning scientific names to cultivated varieties. Despite this, the original names are still recognized by some authorities today, leading to confusion.<ref name=DRC/><ref name=Porc02/> |
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The currently accepted [[Botanical name|scientific names]] for most groups of cultivated bananas are '''''Musa acuminata''''' <small>Colla</small> and '''''Musa balbisiana''''' <small>Colla</small> for the ancestral species, and '''''Musa'' × ''paradisiaca''''' <small>L.</small> for the hybrid ''M. acuminata'' × ''M. balbisiana''.<ref name=WCSP_Mp/> |
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[[File:Nedravazhakola.jpg|right|thumb|A variety of banana cultivated widely in [[India]]n state of [[Kerala]], locally known as ''nendran'']] |
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[[Synonym (taxonomy)|Synonyms]] of ''M.'' × ''paradisica'' include: |
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* A large number of subspecific and varietial names of ''M.'' × ''paradisiaca'', including ''M. p.'' subsp. ''sapientum'' <small>(L.) Kuntze</small> |
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* ''Musa'' × ''dacca'' <small>Horan.</small> |
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* ''Musa'' × ''sapidisiaca'' <small>K.C.Jacob, nom. superfl.</small> |
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* ''Musa'' × ''sapientum'' <small>L.</small>, and a large number of its varietal names, including ''M.'' × ''sapientum'' var. ''paradisiaca'' <small>(L.) Baker, nom. illeg.</small> |
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Generally, modern classifications of banana cultivars follow Simmonds and Shepherd's system. Cultivars are placed in groups based on the number of chromosomes they have and which species they are derived from. Thus the [[Latundan banana]] is placed in the AAB Group, showing that it is a triploid derived from both ''M. acuminata'' (A) and ''M. balbisiana'' (B). For a list of the cultivars classified under this system see [[List of banana cultivars]]. |
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In 2012, a team of scientists announced they had achieved a draft sequence of the genome of ''[[Musa acuminata]]''.<ref name=dHon12/> |
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==Bananas and plantains== |
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In regions such as North America and Europe, ''Musa'' fruits offered for sale can be divided into "bananas" and "[[Plantain (cooking)|plantains]]", based on their intended use as food. Thus the banana producer and distributor [[Chiquita Brands International|Chiquita]] produces publicity material for the American market which says that "a plantain is not a banana". The stated differences are that plantains are more [[starch]]y and less sweet; they are eaten cooked rather than raw; they have thicker skin, which may be green, yellow or black; and they can be used at any stage of ripeness.<ref name=Chiquita/> Linnaeus made the same distinction between plantains and bananas when first naming two "species" of ''Musa''.{{sfn|Valmayor|Jamaluddin|Silayoi|Kusumo|2000|p=2}} Members of the "[[Plantain (true)|plantain subgroup]]" of banana cultivars, most important as food in West Africa and Latin America, correspond to the Chiquita description, having long pointed fruit. They are described by Ploetz et al. as "true" plantains, distinct from other cooking bananas.{{sfn|Ploetz|Kepler|Daniells|Nelson|2007|pp=18–19}} The cooking bananas of East Africa belong to a different group, the [[East African Highland banana]]s,{{sfn|Ploetz|Kepler|Daniells|Nelson|2007|p=12}} so would not qualify as "true" plantains on this definition. |
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An alternative approach divides bananas into dessert bananas and cooking bananas, with plantains being one of the subgroups of cooking bananas.{{sfn|Office of the Gene Technology Regulator|2008|p=1}} [[Polyploid|Triploid]] cultivars derived solely from ''M. acuminata'' are examples of "dessert bananas", whereas triploid cultivars derived from the hybrid between ''M. acuminata'' and ''M. balbinosa'' (in particular the [[Plantain (true)|plantain subgroup]] of the [[List of banana cultivars#AAB Group|AAB Group]]) are "plantains".<ref name=StovSimm87p183/><ref name=QiMoorOrch00/> Small farmers in [[Colombia]] grow a much wider range of cultivars than large commercial plantations. A study of these cultivars showed that they could be placed into at least three groups based on their characteristics: dessert bananas, non-plantain cooking bananas, and plantains, although there were overlaps between dessert and cooking bananas.<ref name=GibeDufoGiraSanc09/> |
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In Southeast Asia – the center of diversity for bananas, both wild and cultivated – the distinction between "bananas" and "plantains" does not work, according to Valmayor et al. Many bananas are used both raw and cooked. There are starchy cooking bananas which are smaller than those eaten raw. The range of colors, sizes and shapes is far wider than in those grown or sold in Africa, Europe or the Americas.{{sfn|Valmayor|Jamaluddin|Silayoi|Kusumo|2000|p=2}} Southeast Asian languages do not make the distinction between "bananas" and "plantains" that is made in English (and Spanish). Thus both [[#Cavendish|Cavendish cultivars]], the classic yellow dessert bananas, and [[Saba banana|Saba cultivars]], used mainly for cooking, are called ''pisang'' in [[Malaysia]] and [[Indonesia]], ''kluai'' in [[Thailand]] and ''chuoi'' in [[Vietnam]].{{sfn|Valmayor|Jamaluddin|Silayoi|Kusumo|2000|pp=8–12}} [[Fe'i banana]]s, grown and eaten in the islands of the Pacific, are derived from entirely different wild species than traditional bananas and plantains. Most Fe'i bananas are cooked, but [[Karat banana]]s, which are short and squat with bright red skins, very different from the usual yellow dessert bananas, are eaten raw.{{sfn|Engelberger|2003}} |
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In summary, in commerce in Europe and the Americas (although not in small-scale cultivation), it is possible to distinguish between "bananas", which are eaten raw, and "plantains", which are cooked. In other regions of the world, particularly India, Southeast Asia and the islands of the Pacific, there are many more kinds of banana and the two-fold distinction is not useful and not made in local languages. Plantains are one of many kinds of cooking bananas, which are not always distinct from dessert bananas. |
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==Historical cultivation== |
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===Early cultivation=== |
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{{See also|Musa acuminata}} |
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[[File:Banana ancestors (Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana) original range.png|thumb|Original [[Range (biology)|native ranges]] of the ancestors of modern edible bananas. ''[[Musa acuminata]]'' is shown in green and ''[[Musa balbisiana]]'' in orange.<ref name=LangMare04/>]] |
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Farmers in [[Southeast Asia]] and [[Papua New Guinea]] first [[domestication|domesticated]] bananas. Recent [[archaeology|archaeological]] and palaeoenvironmental evidence at [[Kuk Swamp]] in the [[Western Highlands Province]] of Papua New Guinea suggests that banana cultivation there goes back to at least 5000 [[Common Era|BCE]], and possibly to 8000 BCE.<ref name=apscience/><ref name=Denh03/> It is likely that other species were later and independently domesticated elsewhere in Southeast Asia. Southeast Asia is the region of [[Center of diversity|primary diversity]] of the banana. Areas of secondary diversity are found in [[Africa]], indicating a long history of banana cultivation in the region.{{sfn|Ploetz|Kepler|Daniells|Nelson|2007|p=7}} |
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[[File:Bananas Muslim world.JPG|thumb|Actual and probable diffusion of bananas during [[Muslim Agricultural Revolution|Islamic times]] (700–1500 CE)<ref name=Wats83/>|alt=Map stating that banana cultivation occurred in pre-Islamic times in India and Southeast Asia, during the 700–1500 CE "Islamic period" along the [[Nile River]] and in [[Mesopotamia]] and [[Palestine]], and less-certainly in sub-Saharan Africa during that same period]] |
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[[Phytolith]] discoveries in [[Cameroon]] dating to the first millennium BCE<ref name=Mbid00/> triggered an as yet unresolved debate about the date of first cultivation in Africa. There is linguistic evidence that bananas were known in [[Madagascar]] around that time.<ref name=Zell05/> The earliest prior evidence indicates that cultivation dates to no earlier than late 6th century CE.<ref name=Lejj05/> It is likely, however, that bananas were brought at least to [[Madagascar]] if not to the East African coast during the phase of [[Malagasy people|Malagasy]] colonization of the island from South East Asia c. 400 CE.<ref name=Rand09/> |
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The banana may also have been present in isolated locations elsewhere in the [[Middle East]] on the eve of [[Islam]]. The [[spread of Islam]] was followed by far-reaching diffusion. There are numerous references to it in Islamic texts (such as poems and [[hadith]]s) beginning in the 9th century. By the 10th century the banana appears in texts from [[Palestine]] and [[Egypt]]. From there it diffused into North Africa and [[Al-Andalus|Muslim Iberia]]. During the medieval ages, bananas from [[Granada]] were considered among the best in the Arab world.<ref name=Wats83/> In 650, Islamic conquerors brought the banana to Palestine. Today, banana consumption increases significantly in Islamic countries during [[Ramadan]], the month of daylight fasting.<ref name=thefinancialexpress-bd/> |
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Bananas were certainly grown in the Christian [[Kingdom of Cyprus]] by the late medieval period. Writing in 1458, the Italian traveller and writer Gabriele Capodilista wrote favourably of the extensive farm produce of the estates at Episkopi, near modern day [[Limassol]], including the region's banana plantations.<ref name=Jenn92/> |
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Bananas were introduced to the [[Americas]] by [[Portugal|Portuguese]] sailors who brought the fruits from [[West Africa]] in the 16th century.<ref name=Botgard/> |
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Many [[Musa (genus)#Selected species|wild banana species]] as well as cultivars exist in extraordinary diversity in [[New Guinea]], [[Malaysia]], [[Indonesia]], [[China]], and the [[Philippines]]. |
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{{quote|There are fuzzy [[Musa velutina|bananas whose skins are bubblegum pink]]; green-and-white striped bananas with pulp the color of orange sherbet; bananas that, when cooked, taste like strawberries. The Double Mahoi plant can produce two bunches at once. The Chinese name of the aromatic Go San Heong banana means 'You can smell it from the next mountain.' The fingers on one banana plant grow fused; another produces bunches of a thousand fingers, each only an inch long.|Mike Peed, ''The New Yorker''<ref name=Peed11/>}} |
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In 1999 archaeologists in London discovered what they believed to be the oldest banana in the UK, in a [[Tudor period|Tudor]] rubbish tip.<ref name=BBC990616/> |
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===Plantation cultivation in the Caribbean, Central and South America=== |
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{{Main|History of modern banana plantations in the Americas}} |
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[[File:Inside a wild-type banana.jpg|thumb|right|Fruits of [[Wild type|wild-type]] bananas have numerous large, hard seeds.|alt=Photo of two cross-sectional halves of seed-filled fruit.]] |
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In the 15th and 16th centuries, Portuguese colonists started banana plantations in the Atlantic Islands, [[Brazil]], and western Africa.<ref name=Phora/> North Americans began consuming bananas on a small scale at very high prices shortly after the Civil War, though it was only in the 1880s that it became more widespread.<ref name=Koep08/> As late as the [[Victorian Era]], bananas were not widely known in Europe, although they were available.<ref name=Phora/> [[Jules Verne]] introduces bananas to his readers with detailed descriptions in ''[[Around the World in Eighty Days (book)|Around the World in Eighty Days]]'' (1872). |
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The earliest modern plantations originated in Jamaica and the related [[Western Caribbean Zone]], including most of [[Central America]]. It involved the combination of modern transportation networks of steamships and railroads with the development of refrigeration that allowed bananas to have more time between harvesting and ripening. North America shippers like [[Lorenzo Dow Baker]] and [[Andrew Preston]], the founders of the [[Boston Fruit Company]] started this process in the 1870s, but railroad builders like [[Minor C. Keith|Minor C Keith]] also participated, eventually culminating in the multi-national giant corporations like today's [[Chiquita Brands International]] and [[Dole Food Company|Dole]].<ref name=Koep08/> These companies were monopolistic, [[vertically integrated]] (meaning they controlled growing, processing, shipping and marketing) and usually used political manipulation to build [[enclave economy|enclave economies]] (economies that were internally self-sufficient, virtually tax exempt, and export oriented that contribute very little to the host economy). Their political maneuvers, which gave rise to the term [[Banana republic]] for states like Honduras and Guatemala, included working with local elites and their rivalries to influence politics or playing the international interests of the United States, especially during the [[Cold War]], to keep the political climate favorable to their interests.<ref name=NZH/> |
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===Peasant cultivation for export in the Caribbean=== |
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{{Main|History of peasant banana production in the Americas}} |
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The vast majority of the world's bananas today are cultivated for family consumption or for sale on local markets. India is the world leader in this sort of production, but many other Asian and African countries where climate and soil conditions allow cultivation also host large populations of banana growers who sell at least some of their crop.{{sfn|Office of the Gene Technology Regulator|2008|pp=7–8}} |
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There are peasant sector banana growers who produce for the world market in the Caribbean, however. The [[Windward Islands]] are notable for the growing, largely of Cavendish bananas, for an international market, generally in Europe but also in North America. In the Caribbean, and especially in Dominica where this sort of cultivation is widespread, holdings are in the 1–2 acre range. In many cases the farmer earns additional money from other crops, from engaging in labor outside the farm, and from a share of the earnings of relatives living overseas. This style of cultivation often was popular in the islands as bananas required little labor input and brought welcome extra income.{{citation needed|date=January 2013}} Banana crops are vulnerable to destruction by high winds, such as tropical storms or [[cyclone]]s.{{sfn|Stover|Simmonds|1987|pp=206–207}} |
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After the signing of the [[NAFTA]] agreements in the 1990s, however, the tide turned against peasant producers. Their costs of production were relatively high and the ending of favorable tariff and other supports, especially in the European Economic Community, made it difficult for peasant producers to compete with the bananas grown on large plantations by the well capitalized firms like Chiquita and Dole. Not only did the large companies have access to cheap labor in the areas they worked, but they were better able to afford modern agronomic advances such as fertilization. The "dollar banana" produced by these concerns made the profit margins for peasant bananas unsustainable.{{citation needed|date=February 2012}} |
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Caribbean countries have sought to redress this problem by providing government supported agronomic services and helping to organize producers' cooperatives. They have also been supporters of the [[Fair Trade]] movement which seeks to balance the inequities in the world trade in commodities.{{citation needed|date=February 2012}} |
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===East Africa=== |
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{{Main|East African Highland bananas}} |
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Most farms supply local consumption. Cooking bananas represent a major food source and a major [[income]] source for smallhold farmers. In east Africa, [[East African Highland bananas|highland bananas]] are of greatest importance as a staple food crop. In countries such as [[Uganda]], [[Burundi]], and [[Rwanda]] per capita consumption has been estimated at {{convert|45|kg}} per year, the highest in the world.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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==Modern cultivation== |
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All widely cultivated bananas today descend from the two wild bananas ''Musa acuminata'' and ''Musa balbisiana''. While the original wild bananas contained large seeds, [[diploid]] or [[polyploidy|polyploid]] cultivars (some being [[Hybrid (biology)|hybrid]]s) with tiny seeds are preferred for human raw fruit consumption.<ref name=Cast09/> These are propagated [[asexual reproduction|asexually]] from offshoots. The plant is allowed to produce two shoots at a time; a larger one for immediate fruiting and a smaller "sucker" or "follower" to produce fruit in 6–8 months. The life of a banana plantation is 25 years or longer, during which time the individual stools or planting sites may move slightly from their original positions as lateral [[rhizome]] formation dictates.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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Cultivated bananas are [[parthenocarpy|parthenocarpic]], i.e. the flesh of the fruit swells and ripens without its seeds being fertilized and developing. Lacking viable seeds, propagation typically involves farmers removing and transplanting part of the underground stem (called a corm). Usually this is done by carefully removing a sucker (a vertical shoot that develops from the base of the banana pseudostem) with some roots intact. However, small [[sympodial]] corms, representing not yet elongated suckers, are easier to transplant and can be left out of the ground for up to two weeks; they require minimal care and can be shipped in bulk.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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It is not necessary to include the corm or root structure to propagate bananas; severed suckers without root material can be propagated in damp [[sand]], although this takes somewhat longer.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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In some countries, commercial propagation occurs by means of [[tissue culture]]. This method is preferred since it ensures disease-free planting material. When using vegetative parts such as suckers for propagation, there is a risk of transmitting diseases (especially the devastating [[Panama disease]]).{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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As a non-seasonal crop, bananas are available fresh year-round.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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===Cavendish=== |
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{{main|Cavendish banana}} |
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[[File:Bananas.jpg|thumb|alt=Grocery store photo of several bunches of bananas|[[Cavendish banana|Cavendish]] bananas are the main commercial banana cultivars sold in the world market.]] |
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In global commerce in 2009, by far the most important cultivars belonged to the triploid [[List of banana cultivars#AAA Group|AAA]] [[cultivar group|group]] of ''Musa acuminata'', commonly referred to as Cavendish group bananas. They accounted for the majority of banana exports,<ref name=Cast09/> despite only coming into existence in 1836.<ref name=Homecooking/> The cultivars [[Dwarf Cavendish]] and [[Grand Nain]] (Chiquita Banana) gained popularity in the 1950s after the previous mass-produced cultivar, [[Gros Michel banana|Gros Michel]] (also an AAA group cultivar), became commercially unviable due to [[Panama disease]], caused by the fungus ''[[Fusarium oxysporum]]'' which attacks the roots of the banana plant.<ref name=Cast09/> Cavendish cultivars are resistant to the Panama Disease but in 2013 there were fears that the [[Black Sigatoka]] fungus would in turn make Cavendish bananas unviable.<ref name=Holmes/> |
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Ease of transport and shelf life rather than superior taste make the Dwarf Cavendish the main export banana.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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Even though it is no longer viable for large scale cultivation, Gros Michel is not extinct and is still grown in areas where Panama disease is not found.<ref name=straightdope/> Likewise, Dwarf Cavendish and Grand Nain are in no danger of extinction, but they may leave supermarket shelves if disease makes it impossible to supply the global market. It is unclear if any existing cultivar can replace Cavendish bananas, so various [[Hybrid (biology)|hybrid]]isation and [[genetic engineering]] programs are attempting to create a disease-resistant, mass-market banana.<ref name=Cast09/> |
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===Ripening=== |
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Export bananas are picked green, and ripen in special rooms upon arrival in the destination country. These rooms are air-tight and filled with [[Ethylene|ethylene gas]] to induce ripening. The vivid yellow color consumers normally associate with supermarket bananas is, in fact, caused by the artificial ripening process.<ref name=Ding07/><ref name=Ahma11/> Flavor and texture are also affected by ripening temperature. Bananas are refrigerated to between {{convert|13.5|and|15|C|F}} during transport. At lower temperatures, ripening permanently stalls, and the bananas turn gray as cell walls break down. The skin of ripe bananas quickly blackens in the {{convert|4|C}} environment of a domestic [[refrigerator]], although the fruit inside remains unaffected. |
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[[File:Banana-fluorescence-081108.jpg|thumb|left|Ripened bananas (left, under [[sunlight]]) fluoresce in blue when exposed to [[UV light]].|alt=Two adjacent photos of bananas. The left is in sunlight; the right is under ultraviolet light.]] |
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"Tree-ripened" Cavendish bananas have a greenish-yellow appearance which changes to a brownish-yellow as they ripen further. Although both flavor and texture of tree-ripened bananas is generally regarded as superior to any type of green-picked fruit,{{Citation needed|date=April 2010}} this reduces shelf life to only 7–10 days.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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Bananas can be ordered by the retailer "ungassed" (''i.e.'' not treated with ethylene), and may show up at the supermarket fully green. {{lang|es|''[[Guineos verdes]]''}} (green bananas) that have not been gassed will never fully ripen before becoming rotten. Instead of fresh eating, these bananas are best suited to cooking, as seen in Mexican culinary dishes.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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A 2008 study reported that ripe bananas [[fluoresce]] when exposed to [[ultraviolet]] light. This property is attributed to the degradation of [[chlorophyll]] leading to the accumulation of a fluorescent product in the skin of the fruit. The chlorophyll [[breakdown product]] is stabilized by a [[propionate]] [[ester]] group. Banana-plant leaves also fluoresce in the same way. Green bananas do not fluoresce. The study suggested that this allows animals which can see light in the ultraviolet spectrum ([[tetrachromat]]s and [[pentachromat]]s) to more easily detect ripened bananas.<ref name=Mose08/> |
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{{clr}} |
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===Storage and transport=== |
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Bananas must be transported over long distances from the tropics to world markets. To obtain maximum shelf life, harvest comes before the fruit is mature. The fruit requires careful handling, rapid transport to ports, cooling, and refrigerated shipping. The goal is to prevent the bananas from producing their natural ripening agent, ethylene. This technology allows storage and transport for 3–4 weeks at {{convert|13|C}}. On arrival, bananas are held at about {{convert|17|C}} and treated with a low concentration of ethylene. After a few days, the fruit begins to ripen and is distributed for final sale. Unripe bananas can not be held in home refrigerators because they suffer from the cold.{{Citation needed|date=February 2011}} Ripe bananas can be held for a few days at home. If bananas are too green, they can be put in a brown paper bag with an apple or tomato overnight to speed up the ripening process.<ref name=ChiquitaRipen/> |
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Carbon dioxide (which bananas produce) and ethylene absorbents extend fruit life even at high temperatures. This effect can be exploited by packing banana in a [[polyethylene]] bag and including an ethylene absorbent, e.g., [[potassium permanganate]], on an inert carrier. The bag is then sealed with a band or string. This treatment has been shown to more than double lifespans up to 3–4 weeks without the need for refrigeration.<ref name=Scot70/><ref name=Scot71/><ref name=Scot74/> |
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===Production and export=== |
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{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; margin:1em" |
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|+ Production and export of bananas and plantains by country (2011)<ref group="Note" name=Note1/> |
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! Country !! Millions<br>of tonnes !! Percentage<br>of world<br>total |
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|- |
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| colspan="3" style="text-align:center;"| '''Table 1: Production''' |
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|- |
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|{{IND}}|| style="text-align:right;"|29.7||style="text-align:right;"|20% |
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|- |
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|{{UGA}}|| style="text-align:right;"|11.1|| style="text-align:right;"|8% |
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|- |
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|{{CHN}}|| style="text-align:right;"|10.7|| style="text-align:right;"|7% |
|||
|- |
|||
|{{PHL}}|| style="text-align:right;"|9.2|| style="text-align:right;"|6% |
|||
|- |
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|{{ECU}}|| style="text-align:right;"|8.0|| style="text-align:right;"|6% |
|||
|- |
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|{{BRA}}|| style="text-align:right;"|7.3|| style="text-align:right;"|5% |
|||
|- |
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|{{INA}}|| style="text-align:right;"|6.1|| style="text-align:right;"|4% |
|||
|- |
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|{{COL}}|| style="text-align:right;"|5.1|| style="text-align:right;"|4% |
|||
|- |
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|{{CMR}}|| style="text-align:right;"|4.8|| style="text-align:right;"|3% |
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|- |
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|{{TAN}}|| style="text-align:right;"|3.9|| style="text-align:right;"|3% |
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|- |
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|All other countries|| style="text-align:right;"|49.6|| style="text-align:right;"|34% |
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|- |
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|'''Total world'''|| style="text-align:right;"|'''145.4'''|| style="text-align:right;"|100% |
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|- |
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| colspan="3" style="text-align:center;"| '''Table 2: Exports''' |
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|- |
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|{{ECU}}|| style="text-align:right;"|5.2||style="text-align:right;"|29% |
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|- |
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|{{CRC}}|| style="text-align:right;"|1.8|| style="text-align:right;"|10% |
|||
|- |
|||
|{{COL}}|| style="text-align:right;"|1.8|| style="text-align:right;"|10% |
|||
|- |
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|{{PHL}}|| style="text-align:right;"|1.6|| style="text-align:right;"|9% |
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|- |
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|{{GUA}}|| style="text-align:right;"|1.5|| style="text-align:right;"|8% |
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|- |
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|All other countries|| style="text-align:right;"|6.0|| style="text-align:right;"|34% |
|||
|- |
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|'''Total world'''|| style="text-align:right;"|'''17.9'''|| style="text-align:right;"|100% |
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|} |
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[[File:2010 Bananas in ChinnaDharapuram, India.JPG|thumb|260 px|Indian Bananas, various varieties sold in a rural shop in South India]] |
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Statistics on the production and export of bananas and plantains are available from the [[Food and Agriculture Organization]]. Some countries produce statistics which distinguish between bananas and plantains, but three of the top four producers ([[India]], [[China]] and the [[Philippines]]) do not, so comparisons can only be made using the total for bananas and plantains combined. The 2011 statistics (see Table 1) show that India led the world in banana production, producing around 20% of the worldwide crop of 145 million metric tonnes. [[Uganda]] was the next largest producer with around 8% of the worldwide crop. Its national data does distinguish between bananas and plantains, and shows that the latter made up over 95% of production. Ten countries produced around two thirds of the total world production.<ref group="Note" name=Note1/> |
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The statistics for the export of bananas and plantains show a rather different picture (see Table 2). Total world exports at around 18 million metric tonnes amounted to only 12% of total world production; two thirds of the exports were generated by only five countries. The top three producing countries do not appear in this table, and two countries, [[Costa Rica]] and [[Guatemala]], do not appear in the table of top producers. Only the Philippines has a consistent position in both tables. Exports were dominated by [[Ecuador]], with 29% of the world total. Statistics for Ecuador distinguish between bananas and plantains; 93% of its exports were classified as bananas.<ref group="Note" name=Note1/> |
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Bananas and plantains constitute a major staple [[agriculture|food crop]] for millions of people in [[developing country|developing countries]]. In most tropical countries, green (unripe) bananas used for [[cooking]] represent the main cultivars. Bananas are cooked in ways that are similar to [[potato]]es. Both can be [[frying|fried]], [[boiling|boiled]], [[baking|baked]], or chipped and have similar [[taste]] and texture when served. One banana provides about the same [[calorie]]s as one potato.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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Most producers are small-scale [[farmer]]s either for home consumption or local markets. Because bananas and plantains produce fruit year-round, they provide an extremely valuable food source during the ''hunger season'' (when the food from one annual/semi-annual harvest has been consumed, and the next is still to come). Bananas and plantains are therefore critical to global [[food security]]. |
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Bananas have been an important source of disagreement in the Doha Round of trade talks. A study for [[ICTSD]] showed that the new deal on EU banana import tariffs will be a boon to [[Latin American]] exporters but would trigger a drop in exports of the fruit from African, Caribbean and Pacific ([[African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States|ACP]]) countries.<ref name=Anan09/> |
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Bananas are among the most widely consumed foods in the world. [[Chiquita Brands International|Chiquita]], [[Fresh Del Monte Produce|Del Monte]], [[Dole Food Company|Dole]], and [[Fyffes]] grow their own bananas in Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica, [[Guatemala]], and [[Honduras]]. Banana plantations are capital intensive and demand significant expertise. The majority of independent growers are large and wealthy landowners in these countries. Producers have attempted to raise prices via marketing them as "[[fair trade]]" or [[Rainforest Alliance]]-certified in some countries.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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The banana has an extensive trade history starting with firms such as the Irish [[Fyffes]] and the US [[United Fruit Company]] (now Chiquita) at the end of the 19th century. For much of the 20th century, bananas and [[coffee]] dominated the export economies of [[Central America]]. In the 1930s, bananas and [[coffee]] made up as much as 75% of the region's exports. As late as 1960, the two crops accounted for 67% of the exports from the region. Though the two were grown in similar regions, they tended not to be distributed together. The [[United Fruit Company]] based its business almost entirely on the banana trade, because the coffee trade proved too difficult to control. The term "[[banana republic]]" has been applied to most countries in [[Central America]], but from a strict economic perspective only Costa Rica, Honduras, and [[Panama]] had economies dominated by the banana trade.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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The [[European Union]] has traditionally imported many of its bananas from former European [[Caribbean]] colonies, paying guaranteed prices above global market rates (see [[Lomé Convention]]). These arrangements have now been largely withdrawn under pressure from other major trading powers, principally the [[United States]]. The withdrawal of these indirect subsidies to Caribbean producers is expected to favour the more efficient banana producers of Central America, in which American companies have an economic interest. In addition, small-scale Caribbean producers are finding it difficult to comply with increasingly strict certification requirements. Some support is being provided to Caribbean countries under the EU's Banana Accompanying Measures (BAM).<ref name=Agritrade/> |
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The United States produces few bananas. A mere {{convert|14000|t}} were grown in Hawaii in 2001.<ref name=ipmcenters/> Bananas were once grown in [[Florida]] and southern California.<ref name=crfg/> |
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In March 2014 it was announced that Fyffes and Chiquita would merge to create the world's largest banana company, worth about $1bn (£597m). The new firm, named ChiquitaFyffes, is expected to sell about 160 million boxes of bananas annually.<ref name=BBC140310/> |
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==Pests, diseases, and natural disasters== |
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{{Main|List of banana and plantain diseases}} |
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[[File:BananasBlueBagStLucia.jpg|thumb|upright|Banana bunches are sometimes encased in plastic bags for protection. The bags may be coated with [[pesticide]]s.|alt=Photo of bananas in blue plastic bag]] |
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While in no danger of outright extinction, the most common edible banana cultivar Cavendish (extremely popular in Europe and the Americas) could become unviable for large-scale cultivation in the next 10–20 years. Its predecessor '[[Gros Michel]]', discovered in the 1820s, suffered this fate. Like almost all bananas, Cavendish lacks genetic diversity, which makes it vulnerable to diseases, threatening both commercial cultivation and small-scale subsistence farming.<ref name=NS060613/><ref name=Mont03/> Some commentators remarked that those variants which could replace what much of the world considers a "typical banana" are so different that most people would not consider them the same fruit, and blame the decline of the banana on [[monogenetic]] cultivation driven by short-term commercial motives.<ref name=NZH/> |
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===Panama disease=== |
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[[Panama disease]] is caused by a [[fusarium]] soil [[fungus]] (Race 1), which enters the plants through the roots and travels with water into the trunk and leaves, producing [[gel]]s and gums that cut off the flow of water and nutrients, causing the plant to [[wilting|wilt]], and exposing the rest of the plant to lethal amounts of sunlight. Prior to 1960, almost all commercial banana production centered on "Gros Michel", which was highly susceptible.<ref name=Bark08/> Cavendish was chosen as the replacement for Gros Michel because, among resistant cultivars, it produces the highest quality [[fruit]]. However, more care is required for shipping the Cavendish, and its quality compared to Gros Michel is debated.{{by whom|date=August 2012}}{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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According to current sources, a deadly form of Panama disease is infecting Cavendish. All plants are genetically identical, which prevents evolution of disease resistance. Researchers are examining hundreds of wild varieties for resistance.<ref name=Bark08/> |
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====Tropical race 4==== |
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Tropical race 4 (TR4) is a reinvigorated strain of Panama disease first discovered in 1993. This virulent form of fusarium wilt has wiped out Cavendish in several southeast Asian countries. It has yet to reach the Americas; however, soil fungi can easily be carried on boots, clothing, or tools. This is how TR4 travels and is its most likely route into Latin America. Cavendish is highly susceptible to TR4, and over time, Cavendish is almost certain to be eliminated from commercial production by this disease. The only known defense to TR4 is genetic resistance.<ref name=IBS/> |
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===Black sigatoka=== |
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[[Black sigatoka]] is a fungal leaf spot disease first observed in [[Fiji]] in 1963 or 1964. Black Sigatoka (also known as black leaf streak) has spread to banana plantations throughout the tropics from infected banana leaves that were used as packing material. It affects all main cultivars of bananas and plantains (including the Cavendish cultivars<ref name =Holmes/>), impeding [[photosynthesis]] by blackening parts of the leaves, eventually killing the entire leaf. Starved for energy, fruit production falls by 50% or more, and the bananas that do grow [[ripening|ripen]] prematurely, making them unsuitable for export. The fungus has shown ever-increasing resistance to treatment, with the current expense for treating {{convert|1|ha}} exceeding [[United States dollar|$]]1,000 per year. In addition to the expense, there is the question of how long intensive spraying can be environmentally justified. Several resistant cultivars of banana have been developed, but none has yet received commercial acceptance due to taste and texture issues.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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====In East Africa==== |
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With the arrival of [[Black sigatoka]], banana production in eastern Africa fell by over 40%. For example, during the 1970s, Uganda produced {{convert|15|to|20|t}} of bananas per hectare. Today, production has fallen to only {{convert|6|t}} per hectare.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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The situation has started to improve as new disease-resistant cultivars have been developed by the [[International Institute of Tropical Agriculture]] and the National Agricultural Research Organisation of Uganda (NARO), such as FHIA-17 (known in [[Uganda]] as the [[Kabana 3]]). These new cultivars taste different from the Cabana banana, which has slowed their acceptance by local farmers. However, by adding [[mulch]] and [[manure]] to the soil around the base of the plant, these new cultivars have substantially increased yields in the areas where they have been tried.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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The [[International Institute of Tropical Agriculture]] and NARO, funded by the [[Rockefeller Foundation]] and [[Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research|CGIAR]] have started trials for [[genetic engineering|genetically modified]] bananas that are resistant to both Black sigatoka and banana weevils. It is developing cultivars specifically for smallholder and subsistence farmers.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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===Banana bunchy top virus=== |
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[[Banana bunchy top virus]] (BBTV) jumps from plant to plant using [[aphid]]s. It stunts leaves, resulting in a "bunched" appearance. Generally, an infected plant does not produce fruit, although mild strains exist which allow some production. These mild strains are often mistaken for malnourishment, or a disease other than BBTV. There is no cure; however, its effect can be minimized by planting only [[plant tissue culture|tissue-cultured plants]] (in vitro propagation), controlling aphids, and immediately removing and destroying infected plants.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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===Banana bacterial wilt=== |
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[[Banana Xanthomonas wilt|Banana bacterial wilt]] (BBW) is a bacterial disease caused by ''[[Xanthomonas campestris]]'' pv. ''musacearum''.<ref name=Tush04/> After being originally identified on a close relative of bananas, ''[[Ensete ventricosum]]'', in [[Ethiopia]] in the 1960s,<ref name=Brad68/> BBW occurred in Uganda in 2001 affecting all banana cultivars. Since then BBW has been diagnosed in Central and East Africa including the banana growing regions of [[Rwanda]], the [[Democratic Republic of the Congo]], [[Tanzania]], [[Kenya]], [[Burundi]], and [[Uganda]].<ref name=Mwan07/> |
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==Nutrition== |
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{{nutritionalvalue |
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| name=Bananas, raw |
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| kJ=371 |
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| protein=1.09 g |
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| fat=0.33 g |
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| carbs=22.84 g |
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| fiber=2.6 g |
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| sugars=12.23 g |
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| iron_mg=0.26 |
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| magnesium_mg=27 |
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| phosphorus_mg=22 |
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| potassium_mg=358 |
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| sodium_mg=1 |
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| zinc_mg=0.15 |
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| manganese_mg=0.27 |
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| opt1n=[[Fluoride]] |
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| opt1v=2.2 µg |
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| vitC_mg=8.7 |
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| thiamin_mg=0.031 |
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| riboflavin_mg=0.073 |
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| niacin_mg=0.665 |
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| pantothenic_mg=0.334 |
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| vitB6_mg=0.4 |
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| folate_ug=20 |
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| choline_mg=9.8 |
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| source_usda=1 |
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| note=[http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/search/list?qlookup=09040&format=Full Link to USDA Database entry] |
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}} |
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Bananas are an excellent source of [[Vitamin B6|vitamin B<sub>6</sub>]], soluble fiber, and contain moderate amounts of [[vitamin C]], [[manganese]] and [[potassium]].<ref name=Nutridata/> Banana ingestion may affect [[dopamine]] production in people deficient in the [[amino acid]] [[tyrosine]], a dopamine precursor present in bananas.<ref name=Wong11/><ref name=UMM/> Individuals with a [[latex allergy]] may experience a reaction to bananas.<ref name=Tayl04/> |
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==Culture== |
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===Food and cooking=== |
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{{See also|Cooking plantain|List of banana dishes}} |
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====Fruit==== |
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Bananas are a staple [[starch]] for many [[tropics|tropical]] populations. Depending upon cultivar and ripeness, the flesh can vary in taste from starchy to sweet, and texture from firm to mushy. Both the skin and inner part can be eaten raw or cooked. The primary component of the aroma of fresh bananas is [[isoamyl acetate]] (also known as ''banana oil''), which, along with several other compounds such as [[butyl acetate]] and [[isobutyl acetate]], is a significant contributor to banana flavor.<ref name=Fahl00/><ref name=Mui02/><ref name=Salm96/> |
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During the [[Ripening|ripening process]], bananas produce the gas [[ethylene]], which acts as a [[plant hormone]] and indirectly affects the flavor. Among other things, ethylene stimulates the formation of [[amylase]], an [[enzyme]] that breaks down starch into sugar, influencing the taste of bananas. The greener, less ripe bananas contain higher levels of starch and, consequently, have a "starchier" taste. On the other hand, yellow bananas taste sweeter due to higher sugar concentrations. Furthermore, ethylene signals the production of [[pectinase]], an enzyme which breaks down the [[pectin]] between the cells of the banana, causing the banana to soften as it ripens.<ref name=plantphys/><ref name=newton/> |
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Bananas are eaten deep fried, baked in their skin in a split [[bamboo]], or steamed in [[glutinous rice]] wrapped in a banana leaf. Bananas can be made into [[fruit preserves|jam]]. Banana [[pancake]]s are popular amongst [[Backpacking (travel)|backpacker]]s and other travelers in [[South Asia]] and [[Southeast Asia]]. This has elicited the expression ''[[Banana Pancake Trail]]'' for those places in [[Asia]] that cater to this group of travelers. [[Banana chips]] are a snack produced from sliced dehydrated or fried banana or plantain, which have a dark brown color and an intense banana taste. Dried bananas are also ground to make banana flour. Extracting juice is difficult, because when a banana is compressed, it simply turns to pulp. Bananas feature prominently in [[Philippine cuisine]], being part of traditional dishes and desserts like ''[[Maruya (Filipino cuisine)|maruya]]'', ''[[Turrón (Filipino cuisine)|turrón]]'', and ''[[halo-halo]]'' or ''saba con yelo''. Most of these dishes use the [[Saba Banana|Saba]] or Cardaba banana cultivar. Bananas are also commonly used in cuisine in the South-Indian state of [[Kerala]], where they are steamed (''puzhungiyathu''), made into curries,<ref name=pazhampachadi/> fried into chips (''upperi'')<ref name=Hindu130413/> or fried in batter (''pazhampori'').<ref name=Hindu110228/> [[Pisang goreng]], bananas fried with batter similar to the Filipino ''maruya'' or Kerala ''pazhampori'', is a popular dessert in [[Malaysia]], [[Singapore]], and [[Indonesia]]. A similar dish is known in the United Kingdom and United States as banana [[fritter]]s. |
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Plantains are used in various stews and curries or cooked, baked or mashed in much the same way as [[potatoes]], such as the ''Pazham Pachadi'' prepared in [[Kerala]].<ref name=pazhampachadi/> |
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Seeded bananas (''[[Musa balbisiana]]''), one of the forerunners of the common domesticated banana,<ref name=CAB49/> are sold in markets in Indonesia.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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====Flower==== |
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Banana hearts are used as a [[vegetable]]<ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.asiafood.org/glossary_1.cfm?alpha=B&wordid=3219&startno=1&endno=25 |title=Encyclopedia of Asian Food |year=1998 |last=Solomon |first=C |publisher=New Holland Publishers |location=Australia |edition=Periplus |accessdate=2008-05-17 |isbn=0-85561-688-1|archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20080603142416/http://www.asiafood.org/glossary_1.cfm?alpha=B&wordid=3219&startno=1&endno=25|archivedate= June 3, 2008 <!--DASHBot-->|deadurl= no}}</ref> in [[South Asian cuisine|South Asian]] and [[Southeast Asian cuisine]], either raw or steamed with dips or cooked in soups, curries and fried foods.<ref>[http://www.dudaonline.com/southeast-asia/thailand/fried-banana-flowers/ Fried banana flowers]. Duda Online (December 14, 2009). Retrieved on 2011-10-02.</ref> The flavor resembles that of [[artichoke]]. As with artichokes, both the fleshy part of the bracts and the heart are edible.<ref>{{cite web|title=Banana Flowers|url=http://localfoods.about.com/od/Bananas/ss/Banana-Flowers.htm|publisher=About.com|accessdate=2014-05-13|author=Molly Watson}} See also the link on that page for Banana Flower Salad.</ref> |
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====Leaves==== |
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{{main|Banana leaf}} |
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[[Banana leaf|Banana leaves]] are large, flexible, and waterproof. They are often used as ecologically friendly disposable food containers or as "plates" in [[South Asia]] and several [[Southeast Asia]]n countries. In [[Indonesian cuisine]], banana leaf is employed in cooking method called [[pepes]] and [[botok]]; the banana leaf packages containing food ingredients and spices are cooked on steam, in boiled water or grilled on charcoal. In the South Indian states of [[Tamil Nadu]], [[Karnataka]], [[Andhra Pradesh]] and [[Kerala]] in every occasion the food must be served in a banana leaf and as a part of the food a banana is served. Steamed with dishes they impart a subtle sweet flavor. They often serve as a wrapping for grilling food. The leaves contain the juices, protect food from burning and add a subtle flavor.<ref name=morton/> In Tamil Nadu (India) leaves are fully dried and used as packing material for food stuffs and also making cups to hold liquid foods. In Central American countries, banana leaves are often used as wrappers for [[tamales]].{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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====Trunk==== |
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The tender core of the banana plant's trunk is also used in [[South Asian]] and [[Southeast Asian cuisine]], and notably in the [[Burma|Burmese]] dish [[mohinga]]. |
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<gallery widths="120px" heights="120px"> |
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File:Banana and cross section.jpg|Peeled, whole, and longitudinal section |
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File:Bananajf.jpg|''Kilawin na pusô ng saging'', a [[Cuisine of the Philippines|Filipino dish]] using banana flowers |
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File:Nacatamales in steamer.jpg|Nicaraguan Nacatamales, in banana leaves, ready to be steamed |
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File:Kaeng yuak.JPG|''Kaeng yuak'' is a northern [[Thai curry]] made with the core of the banana plant |
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File:Pisang goreng in a basket.jpg|''[[Pisang goreng]]'' fried banana coated in batter, popular snack in [[Indonesian cuisine|Indonesia]] |
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File:YosriPengatPisang.jpg|Banana in sweet gravy, known as ''pengat pisang'' in Malay. Popular along Malaysia's east coast |
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</gallery> |
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===Fiber=== |
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====Textiles==== |
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The banana plant has long been a source of [[fiber]] for high quality [[textile]]s. In [[Japan]], banana cultivation for clothing and household use dates back to at least the 13th century. In the Japanese system, leaves and shoots are cut from the plant periodically to ensure softness. Harvested shoots are first boiled in [[lye]] to prepare fibers for [[yarn]]-making. These banana shoots produce fibers of varying degrees of softness, yielding yarns and textiles with differing qualities for specific uses. For example, the outermost fibers of the shoots are the coarsest, and are suitable for [[tablecloth]]s, while the softest innermost fibers are desirable for [[kimono]] and [[hakama|kamishimo]]. This traditional Japanese cloth-making process requires many steps, all performed by hand.<ref>{{cite web |title =Traditional Crafts of Japan – Kijoka Banana Fiber Cloth |publisher=Association for the Promotion of Traditional Craft Industries |url=http://www.kougei.or.jp/english/crafts/0130/f0130.html |accessdate=December 11, 2006|archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20061104231743/http://www.kougei.or.jp/english/crafts/0130/f0130.html|archivedate= November 4, 2006 <!--DASHBot-->|deadurl= no}}</ref> |
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In a [[Nepal]]ese system the trunk is harvested instead, and small pieces are subjected to a softening process, mechanical fiber extraction, bleaching and drying. After that, the fibers are sent to the [[Kathmandu Valley]] for use in [[Carpet|rug]]s with a [[silk]]-like texture. These banana fiber rugs are woven by traditional Nepalese hand-knotting methods, and are sold [[rugmark|RugMark certified]].{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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In South Indian state of [[Tamil Nadu]] after harvesting for fruit the trunk (outer layer of the shoot) is made into fine thread used in making of flower [[garland]]s instead of thread.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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====Paper==== |
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{{Main|Banana paper}} |
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Banana fiber is used in the production of banana paper. Banana paper is made from two different parts: the [[bark]] of the banana plant, mainly used for artistic purposes, or from the fibers of the stem and non-usable fruits. The paper is either hand-made or by industrial process.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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===Cultural roles=== |
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{{multiple image |
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| direction = vertical |
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| width = 220 |
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| image1 = River Kaveri worship Tiruchirappalli.jpg |
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| alt1 = |
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| caption1 = Coconut, banana and banana leaves used while worshiping [[Kaveri River|River Kaveri]] at [[Tiruchirappalli]], [[India]]. |
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| image2 = Thanin market banana flowers and leaves.jpg |
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| alt2 = |
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| caption2 = Banana flowers and leaves for sale in the Thanin market in [[Chiang Mai]], [[Thailand]]. |
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}} |
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====Arts==== |
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* The song "[[Yes! We Have No Bananas]]" was written by [[Frank Silver]] and [[Irving Cohn]] and originally released in 1923; for many decades, it was the best-selling [[sheet music]] in history. Since then the song has been rerecorded several times and has been particularly popular during banana shortages.<ref name="shaw">{{cite book|author=Arnold Shaw|title =The Jazz Age: Popular Music in 1920s|chapter ="Yes! We have No Bananas"/"Charleston" (1923)|publisher =Oxford University Press|year =1987|page=132|isbn =9780195060829|url =http://books.google.com.ph/books?id=MECLMrzcC9kC&lpg=PA132&dq=Yes!%20We%20Have%20No%20Bananas&pg=PA132#v=onepage&q=Yes!%20We%20Have%20No%20Bananas&f=false}}</ref><ref name="Koeppel">{{cite journal|author=Dan Koeppel|date=2005|title=Can This Fruit Be Saved?|journal=Popular Science|volume=267|issue=2|pages=60–70|publisher=Bonnier Corporation|url=http://books.google.com.ph/books?id=aAJ8pAwSkkUC&lpg=PA62&dq=Yes!%20We%20Have%20No%20Bananas%20shortage&pg=PA60#v=onepage&q=Yes!%20We%20Have%20No%20Bananas%20shortage&f=false|ref=harv}}</ref> |
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* A person slipping on a [[banana peel]] has been a staple of [[physical comedy]] for generations. A 1910 [[USA]] comedy recording features a popular character of the time, "Uncle Josh", claiming to describe his own such incident:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.archive.org/details/CalStewart_part2 |title=Collected Works of Cal Stewart part 2 |accessdate=2010-11-17 |last=Stewart |first=Cal |work=Uncle Josh in a Department Store (1910) |publisher=The Internet Archive }}</ref> |
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: {{quote|Now I don't think much of the man that throws a banana peelin' on the sidewalk, and I don't think much of the banana peel that throws a man on the sidewalk neither ... my foot hit the bananer peelin' and I went up in the air, and I come down ker-plunk, jist as I was pickin' myself up a little boy come runnin' across the street ... he says, "Oh mister, won't you please do that agin? My little brother didn't see you do it."}} |
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* The poet [[Matsuo Bashō|Bashō]] is named after the Japanese word for a banana plant. The "bashō" planted in his garden by a grateful student became a source of inspiration to his poetry, as well as a symbol of his life and home.<ref>Matsuo Basho: the Master Haiku Poet, Kodansha Europe, ISBN 0-87011-553-7</ref> |
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* The cover artwork for [[The Velvet Underground & Nico|the debut album]] of [[The Velvet Underground]] features a banana made by [[Andy Warhol]]. On the original vinyl LP version, the design allowed the listener to "peel" this banana to find a pink, peeled phallic banana on the inside.<ref name="demain">{{cite web|url=http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/109881|title=The Stories Behind 11 Classic Album Covers |author=Bill DeMain|date=December 11, 2011|publisher=mental_floss|accessdate=January 6, 2013}}</ref> |
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====Religion and popular beliefs==== |
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[[File:XRF-Tani-.jpg|thumb|upright|''[[Nang Tani]]'', the female [[ghost]] of Thai folklore that haunts banana plants]] |
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In [[Burma]], bunches of green bananas surrounding a green [[coconut]] in a tray form an important part of traditional offerings to the [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]] and the [[Nat (spirit)|Nat]]s.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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In all the important festivals and occasions of [[Hindu]]s, the serving of bananas plays a prominent part. Traditionally in [[Tamil culture|Tamil]] marriages, banana plants are tied on both sides of the entrance of houses to bless the newlyweds to be useful to each other.{{citation needed|date=April 2013}} The banana is one of three fruits with this significance, the others being [[mango]] and [[jack fruit]].{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} |
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In [[Thailand]], it is believed that [[Musa balbisiana|a certain type]] of banana plants may be inhabited by a [[spirit]], [[Nang Tani]], a type of ghost related to trees and similar plants that manifests itself as a young woman.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://thailand-amulets.net/?p=3485 |title=Banana Tree Prai Lady Ghost |publisher=Thailand-amulets.net |date=2012-03-19 |accessdate=2012-08-26}}</ref> Often people tie a length of colored satin cloth around the pseudostem of the banana plants.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thaiworldview.com/bouddha/animism5.htm |title=Spirits |publisher=Thaiworldview.com |accessdate=2012-08-26}}</ref> |
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In [[Ethnic Malays|Malay folklore]], the ghost known as [[Pontianak (folklore)|Pontianak]] is associated with banana plants (''pokok pisang''), and its spirit is said to reside in them during the day.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.castleofspirits.com/pontianak.html |title=Pontianak- South East Asian Vampire |publisher=Castleofspirits.com |accessdate=2014-05-13}}</ref> |
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===Other uses=== |
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* Banana sap from the [[pseudostem]], peelings or flesh may be sufficiently sticky for adhesive uses.{{Citation needed|date=December 2010}} |
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* The large leaves may be used as [[umbrella]]s.<ref name=morton>{{cite web|url=http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/banana.html#Other%20Uses |title=Banana |publisher=Hortpurdue.edu |accessdate=2009-04-16|archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20090415160027/http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/banana.html|archivedate= April 15, 2009 <!--DASHBot-->|deadurl= no}}</ref> |
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* [[Banana peel]] may have capability to extract [[Heavy metal (chemistry)|heavy metal]] [[contamination]] from river water, similar to other [[Water purification|purification]] materials.<ref>{{cite web|last=Minard|first=Anne|title=Is That a Banana in Your Water?|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/03/110311-water-pollution-lead-heavy-metal-banana-peel-innovation/|work=National Geographic|accessdate=2011-03-15|date=March 11, 2011|archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20110426022233/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/03/110311-water-pollution-lead-heavy-metal-banana-peel-innovation/|archivedate= April 26, 2011 <!--DASHBot-->|deadurl= no}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Banana Peel Applied to the Solid Phase Extraction of Copper and Lead from River Water: Preconcentration of Metal Ions with a Fruit Waste|doi=10.1021/ie101499e|volume =50|issue =6|date=2011|last1=Castro|first1=Renata S. D.|last2=Caetano|first2=LaéRcio|last3=Ferreira|first3=Guilherme|last4=Padilha|first4=Pedro M.|last5=Saeki|first5=Margarida J.|last6=Zara|first6=Luiz F.|last7=Martines|first7=Marco Antonio U.|last8=Castro|first8=Gustavo R.|journal=Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research|page=3446|ref=harv|lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> In 2007, banana peel powder was tested as a means of filtration for heavy metals and [[radionuclide]]s occurring in water produced by the nuclear and fertilizer industries (cadmium contaminant is present in phosphates). When added and thoroughly mixed for 40 minutes, the powder can remove roughly 65% of heavy metals, and this can be repeated.<ref>ADIT, BE Brazil (96, 3 April 2007) from Master Thesis of M.R. Boniolo presented at Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares ([http://www.ipen.br/ IPEN]).</ref> |
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{{clear}} |
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==Notes== |
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{{Reflist|group="Note"|refs= |
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<ref name=Note1>The figures in the tables were derived from: {{cite web |title=FAOSTAT |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |url=http://faostat3.fao.org/home/index.html#DOWNLOAD }} The datasets for bananas and plantains for 2011 were downloaded and combined (the two are not distinguished in many cases). Totals and percentages were then calculated. The number of countries shown was chosen to account for a minimum of 66% of the world total.</ref> |
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}} |
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<ref name=Mbid00>{{cite journal |title=Evidence for banana cultivation and animal husbandry during the first millennium BCE in the forest of southern Cameroon |last1=Mbida |first1=V.M. |last2=Van Neer |first2=W. |last3=Doutrelepont |first3=H. |last4=Vrydaghs |first4=L. |date=2000 |journal=Journal of Archeological Science |url=http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/krigbaum/6930/mbida_etal_JAS_2000.pdf |doi=10.1006/jasc.1999.0447 |volume=27 |issue=2 |page=151 |lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Mont03>{{cite news |last=Montpellier |first=Emile Frison |title=Rescuing the banana |publisher=[[New Scientist]] |date=February 8, 2003 |url=http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg17723813.300-rescuing-the-banana.html |accessdate=2006-12-09}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Mose08>{{Cite journal |first1=Simone |last1=Moser |first2=Thomas |last2=Müller |first3=Marc-Olivier |last3=Ebert |first4=Steffen |last4=Jockusch |first5=Nicholas J. |last5=Turro |first6=Bernhard |last6=Kräutler |date=2008 |title=Blue luminescence of ripening bananas |journal=Angewandte Chemie International Edition |volume=47 | issue=46 |pages=8954–8957 |doi=10.1002/anie.200803189 |pmc=2912500 |pmid=18850621 |ref=harv |url=http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2912500/pdf/ukmss-31317.pdf |accessdate=2014-05-16 |lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Mui02>{{cite journal |url=http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf011218n |title=Flavor and Texture of Banana Chips Dried by Combinations of Hot Air, Vacuum, and Microwave Processing |journal=Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry |date=2002 |volume=50 |issue=7 |pages=1883–1889 |doi=10.1021/jf011218n |last1=Mui |first1=Winnie W. Y. |last2=Durance |first2=Timothy D. |last3=Scaman |first3=Christine H. |lastauthoramp=yes}} "Isoamyl acetate (9.6%) imparts the characteristic aroma typical of fresh bananas (13, 17−20), while butyl acetate (8.1%) and isobutyl acetate (1.4%) are considered to be character impact compounds of banana flavor."</ref> |
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<ref name=MW>{{cite web |contribution=Banana |title=Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary |url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/banana?show=0&t=1357340585 |accessdate=2013-01-04 |ref=harv }}</ref> |
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<ref name=Mwan07>{{Cite journal |last1=Mwangi |first1=M. |last2=Bandyopadhyay |first2=R. |last3=Ragama |first3=P. |last4=Tushemereirwe |first4=R.K. |title=Assessment of banana planting practices and cultivar tolerance in relation to management of soilborne ''Xanthomonas campestris'' pv. ''musacearum'' |journal=Crop Protection |volume=26 |date=2007 |pages=1203–1208 |doi=10.1016/j.cropro.2006.10.017 |issue=8 |ref=harv |lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> |
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<ref name=newton>{{cite web |title=Ethylene Process |url=http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/bot00/bot00553.htm |accessdate=2010-02-17 |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20100324070541/http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/bot00/bot00553.htm |archivedate=2010-03-24}}</ref> |
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<ref name=NS060613>{{cite news |title=A future with no bananas? |publisher=[[New Scientist]] |date=May 13, 2006 |url=http://www.newscientist.com/channel/earth/dn9152-a-future-with-no-bananas.html |accessdate=2006-12-09 }}</ref> |
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<ref name=Nutridata>{{cite web |title=Nutrition Facts for raw banana, one NLEA serving, 126 g |publisher=Nutritiondata.com |url=http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fruits-and-fruit-juices/1846/2 }}</ref> |
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<ref name=NZH>{{cite news |title=Big-business greed killing the banana – Independent |publisher=[[The New Zealand Herald]] |date=May 24, 2008 |page=A19}}</ref> |
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<ref name=OEtymD>{{cite web |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=banana |title=Banana |work=Online Etymology Dictionary |accessdate=2010-08-05}}</ref> |
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<ref name=pazhampachadi>{{cite news |title=Pazham Pachadi |url=http://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/Food/pazham-pachadi/article1489810.ece |accessdate=2014-01-03 |location=Chennai, India |work=The Hindu |first=Prema |last=Manmadhan |date=February 28, 2011}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Peed11>{{cite news |last=Peed |first=Mike |url=http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/01/10/110110fa_fact_peed |title=We Have No Bananas: Can Scientists Defeat a Devastating Blight? |newspaper=The New Yorker |date=January 10, 2011 |pages=28–34 |accessdate=2011-01-13}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Phora>{{cite web|url=http://www.phora-sotoby.com/history.html |title=Phora Ltd. – History of Banana |publisher=Phora-sotoby.com |accessdate=2009-04-16 |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20090416175908/http://www.phora-sotoby.com/history.html |archivedate=2009-04-16 }}</ref> |
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<ref name=PicqINIB00>{{Cite book |date=2000 |editor-last=Picq |editor-first=Claudine |editor2-last=INIBAP |title=Bananas |edition=English |publication-place=Montpellier |publisher=International Network for the Improvement of Banana and Plantains/International Plant Genetic Resources Institute |isbn=978-2-910810-37-5 |url=http://www.musalit.org/pdf/info09.1_en.pdf |accessdate=2013-01-31 |lastauthoramp=yes }}</ref> |
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<ref name=plantphys>{{cite web |title=Fruit Ripening |url=http://plantphys.info/plants_human/fruitgrowripe.shtml |accessdate=2010-02-17}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Porc02>{{cite web |url= http://www.plantnames.unimelb.edu.au/Sorting/Musa.html |title= Sorting Musa names |first=Michel H. |last=Porcher |date=July 19, 2002 |publisher=The University of Melbourne |accessdate=2011-01-11 }}</ref> |
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<ref name=purdue1>{{cite web|url=http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/banana.html |title=Banana from 'Fruits of Warm Climates' by Julia Morton |publisher=Hort.purdue.edu |accessdate=2009-04-16 |archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20090415160027/http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/banana.html |archivedate=2009-04-15 }}</ref> |
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<ref name=QiMoorOrch00>{{Cite journal |last=Qi |first=Baoxiu |last2=Moore |first2=Keith G. |last3=Orchard |first3=John |date=2000 |title=Effect of Cooking on Banana and Plantain Texture |journal=Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry |volume=48 |pages=4221–4226 |doi=10.1021/jf991301z |lastauthoramp=yes |issue=9 |pmid=10995341 |ref=harv }}</ref> |
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<ref name=Rand09>{{cite book |last1=Randrianja |first1=Solofo |first2=Stephen |last2=Ellis |title=Madagascar: A Short History |publisher=University of Chicago Press |date=2009 |isbn=978-1-85065-947-1 |lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Salm96>{{cite journal |title=Compositional and Isotopic Studies of Fruit Flavours. Part I. The Banana Aroma |journal=Flavour and Fragrance Journal |date=November–December 1996 |volume=11 |issue=6 |pages=353–359 |doi=10.1002/(SICI)1099-1026(199611)11:6<353::AID-FFJ596>3.0.CO;2-9 |last1=Salmon |first1=B. |last2=Martin |first2=G. J. |last3=Remaud |first3=G. |last4=Fourel |first4=F. |lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Scot70>{{cite journal |last1=Scott |first1=K.J. |last2=McGlasson |first2=W.B. |last3=Roberts |first3=E.A. |title=Potassium Permanganate as an Ethylene Absorbent in Polyethylene Bags to Delay the Ripening of Bananas During Storage |journal= Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture and Animal Husbandry |doi=10.1071/EA9700237 |volume=10 |issue=43 |page=237 |date=1970 |ref=harv |lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Scot71>{{cite journal |last1=Scott |first1=K.J. |last2=Blake |first2=J.R. |last3=Stracha |first3=G. |last4=Tugwell |first4=B.L. |last5=McGlasson |first5=W.B. |date=1971 |title=Transport of Bananas at Ambient Temperatures using Polyethylene Bags |journal=Tropical Agriculture (Trinidad) |volume=48 |pages=163–165 |ref=harv |lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Scot74>{{cite journal |last1=Scott |first1=K.J. |last2=Gandanegara |first2=S. |date=1974 |title=Effect of Temperature on the Storage Life of bananas Held in Polyethylene Bags with an Ethylene Absorbent |journal=Tropical Agriculture (Trinidad) |volume=51 |pages=23–26 |ref=harv |lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Simm62>{{cite journal |first=N.W. |last=Simmonds |date=1962 |title=Where our bananas come from |journal=New Scientist |volume=16 |issue=307 |pages=36–39 |publisher=Reed Business Information |issn=0262-4079 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=ooQ6YhL3rtMC&lpg=PA1&pg=PA36#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=2011-06-11 |ref=harv }}</ref> |
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<ref name=Smit77>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=James P. |date=1977 |title=Vascular Plant Families |publication-place=Eureka, Calif. |publisher=Mad River Press |isbn=978-0-916422-07-3 }}</ref> |
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<ref name=StovSimm87p183>{{Harvtxt|Stover|Simmonds|1987|p=183}}. "The Horn and French group of plantain cultivars (AAB) are preferred for cooking purposes over ABB cooking bananas ... As a result the AAB plantains fetch a higher price than the ABB cooking bananas."</ref> |
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<ref name=straightdope>{{cite web |url=http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2995/are-bananas-about-to-become-extinct |title=Are bananas about to become extinct? |accessdate=2012-12-13}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Tayl04>{{cite journal |last=Taylor |first=J.S. |last2=Erkek |first2=E. |date=2004 |title=Latex allergy: diagnosis and management |journal=Dermatological Therapy |volume=17 |issue=4 |pages=289–301 |pmid=15327474 |doi=10.1111/j.1396-0296.2004.04024.x |ref=harv |lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> |
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<ref name=thefinancialexpress-bd>{{cite web |first1=Jasim Uddin |last1=Haroon |date=September 10, 2008 |title=Banana consumption on rise during Ramadan |work=The Financial Express |url=http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/old/2008/09/10/45131.html |accessdate=2014-09-05}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Tush04>{{Cite journal |last1=Tushemereirwe |first1=W. |last2=Kangire |first2=A. |last3=Ssekiwoko |first3=F. |last4=Offord |first4=L.C. |last5=Crozier |first5=J. |last6=Boa |first6=E. |last7=Rutherford |first7=M. |last8=Smith |first8=J.J. |title=First report of ''Xanthomonas campestris'' pv. ''musacearum'' on banana in Uganda |journal=Plant Pathology |volume=53 |date=2004 |page=802 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-3059.2004.01090.x |issue=6 |ref=harv |lastauthoramp=yes}}</ref> |
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<ref name=UMM>{{cite web |url=http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/tyrosine-000329.htm |title=Tyrosine |publisher=University of Maryland, Medical Center |accessdate=2011-02-20}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Wark04>{{Cite web |last=Warkentin |first=Jon |year=2004 |title=How to make a Banana Split |publisher=University of Manitoba |url=http://umanitoba.ca/outreach/crystal/Grade%209/Cluster%201/S1-1-07%20-%20How%20to%20make%20a%20Banana%20Split%20-%20Demonstration%20and%20Investigation.doc |accessdate=2014-07-21 |format=Microsoft Word }}</ref> |
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<ref name=Wats83>{{Cite book |last=Watson |first=Andrew |date=1983 |title=Agricultural innovation in the early Islamic world |publication-place=New York |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-24711-5 |page=54}}</ref> |
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<ref name=WCSP_Musa>Search for "Musa", {{Cite web |title=World Checklist of Selected Plant Families |publisher=[[Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew]] |url=http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/ |accessdate=2013-01-06 }}</ref> |
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<ref name=WCSP_Mp>{{Cite web |contribution=''Musa paradisiaca''|title=World Checklist of Selected Plant Families |publisher=[[Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew]] |url=http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/namedetail.do?name_id=254888 |accessdate=2013-01-06}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Wong11>{{cite web |url=http://www.scq.ubc.ca/the-pursuit-of-happiness-aka-it-appears-that-the-writer-wrote-about-bananas-after-eating-a-few-too-many/ |title=The Pursuit of Happiness (A.K.A. It Appears That The Writer Wrote About Bananas After Eating A Few Too Many) |first=Jerry |last=Wong |publisher=The Science Creative Quarterly, University of British Columbia |accessdate=2011-02-20}}</ref> |
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<ref name=Zell05>{{cite journal |title=Herkunft, Diversität und Züchtung der Banane und kultivierter Zitrusarten ''(Origin, diversity and breeding of banana and cultivated citrus)''|first1=Friedrich J. |last1=Zeller |date=2005 |journal=Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development in the Tropics and Subtropics, Supplement 81 |url=http://www.uni-kassel.de/upress/online/frei/978-3-89958-116-4.volltext.frei.pdf |accessdate=2014-09-05 |language=German}}</ref> |
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}} |
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==Bibliography== |
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{{refbegin|30em}}<!--Please don't remove commented out refs; I'm working on this article as of 30 Jan 2013 User:Peter coxhead--> |
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<!--* {{Cite journal | author=Editors | title=Banana fiber rugs | journal=[[Dwell (magazine)|Dwell]] | date=2006 | volume=6 | issue=7 | page= 44 | ref=harv}} Brief mention of banana fiber rugs |
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* {{Cite journal | last1=Leibling |first1=Robert W. |last2=Pepperdine |first2=Donna |title=Natural remedies of Arabia |journal=[[Saudi Aramco World]] |date=2006 |volume=57 |issue=5 |page=14 |lastauthoramp=yes | ref=harv }} (Banana etymology, banana flour)--> |
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* {{Cite book |last=Nelson |first=S.C. |last2=Ploetz |first2=R.C. |last3=Kepler |first3=A.K. |date=2006 |chapter=''Musa'' species (bananas and plantains) |editor-last=Elevitch |editor-first=C.R<!--.--> |title=Species Profiles for Pacific Island Agroforestry |publication-place=Hōlualoa, Hawai'i |publisher=Permanent Agriculture Resources (PAR) |url=http://agroforestry.net/tti/Musa-banana-plantain.pdf |accessdate=2013-01-10 |lastauthoramp=yes |ref=harv }} |
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* {{Cite book |last=Office of the Gene Technology Regulator|date=2008|title=The Biology of ''Musa'' L. (banana)|publisher=Australian Government|url=http://www.ogtr.gov.au/internet/ogtr/publishing.nsf/content/banana-3/$FILE/biologybanana08.pdf |accessdate=2013-01-30 |lastauthoramp=yes |ref=harv }} |
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* {{Cite book |last=Ploetz |first=R.C. |last2=Kepler |first2=A.K. |last3=Daniells |first3=J. |last4=Nelson |first4=S.C. |date=2007 |chapter=Banana and Plantain: An Overview with Emphasis on Pacific Island Cultivars |editor-last=Elevitch |editor-first=C.R<!--.--> |title=Species Profiles for Pacific Island Agroforestry |publication-place=Hōlualoa, Hawai'i |publisher=Permanent Agriculture Resources (PAR) |url=http://agroforestry.net/tti/Banana-plantain-overview.pdf |accessdate=2013-01-10 |lastauthoramp=yes |ref=harv }} |
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<!--* {{Cite book |last1=Skidmore |first1=T. |last2=Smith |first2=P. |title=Modern Latin America |edition=5th |date=2001 |publication-place=New York |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-512995-3 |lastauthoramp=yes |ref=harv }}--> |
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* {{Cite book |last=Stover |first=R.H. |last2=Simmonds |first2=N.W. |date=1987 |title=Bananas |edition=3rd |publication-place=Harlow, England |publisher=Longman |isbn=978-0-582-46357-8 |lastauthoramp=yes |ref=harv }} |
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* {{Cite book |last=Valmayor |first=Ramón V. |last2=Jamaluddin |first2=S.H. |last3=Silayoi |first3=B. |last4=Kusumo |first4=S. |last5=Danh |first5=L.D. |last6=Pascua |first6=O.C. |last7=Espino |first7=R.R.C. |date=2000 |title=Banana cultivar names and synonyms in Southeast Asia |publication-place=Los Baños, Philippines |publisher=International Network for Improvement of Banana and Plantain – Asia and the Pacific Office |isbn=978-971-91751-2-4 |url=http://kukr.lib.ku.ac.th/Fulltext_kukr/KU0222075c.pdf |accessdate=2013-01-08 |archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/6DWPTd1hm |archivedate=2013-01-08 |lastauthoramp=yes |ref=harv }} |
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{{refend}} |
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==Further reading== |
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*Dan Koeppel, ''[[The New York Times]]'' article of June 18, 2008, [http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/18/opinion/18koeppel.html "Yes, We Will Have No Bananas"] |
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* [[Harriet Lamb]], "Fighting The Banana Wars and other Fairtrade Battles", ISBN 978-1-84604-083-2 |
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==External links== |
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{{Sister project links |wikt=banana |commons=Banana |b=no |n=no |q=no |s=1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Banana |v=Banana production |voy=no }} |
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*[http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/musa-acuminata-banana Kew plant profile: ''Musa acuminata'' (banana)] |
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* [http://agritrade.cta.int/Agriculture/Commodities/Bananas Articles on banana trade at ''Agritrade''] |
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* [http://news.msn.com/science-technology/how-the-global-banana-industry-is-killing-the-world%E2%80%99s-favorite-fruit-1 How the global banana industry is killing the world’s favorite fruit], by Gwynn Guilford of Quartz/MSN News, March 3, 2014 |
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{{Agriculture country lists}} |
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{{Banana}} |
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{{Yunnan cuisine}} |
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[[Category:Bananas| ]] |
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[[Category:Fiber plants]] |
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[[Category:Inflorescence vegetables]] |
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[[Category:Staple foods]] |
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[[Category:Tropical agriculture]] |
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[[Category:Tropical fruit]] |
Revision as of 18:10, 19 October 2014
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/de/Bananavarieties.jpg/220px-Bananavarieties.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/Banana_farm_Chinawal.jpg/220px-Banana_farm_Chinawal.jpg)
A banana is an edible fruit, botanically a berry,[1][2] produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus Musa.[3] (In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called plantains.) The fruit is variable in size, color and firmness, but is usually elongated and curved, with soft flesh rich in starch covered with a rind which may be green, yellow, red, purple, or brown when ripe. The fruits grow in clusters hanging from the top of the plant. Almost all modern edible parthenocarpic (seedless) bananas come from two wild species – Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana. The scientific names of most cultivated bananas are Musa acuminata, Musa balbisiana, and Musa × paradisiaca for the hybrid Musa acuminata × M. balbisiana, depending on their genomic constitution. The old scientific name Musa sapientum is no longer used.
Musa species are native to tropical Indomalaya and Australia, and are likely to have been first domesticated in Papua New Guinea.[4][5] They are grown in at least 107 countries,[6] primarily for their fruit, and to a lesser extent to make fiber, banana wine and banana beer and as ornamental plants.
Worldwide, there is no sharp distinction between "bananas" and "plantains". Especially in the Americas and Europe, "banana" usually refers to soft, sweet, dessert bananas, particularly those of the Cavendish group, which are the main exports from banana-growing countries. By contrast, Musa cultivars with firmer, starchier fruit are called "plantains". In other regions, such as Southeast Asia, many more kinds of banana are grown and eaten, so the simple two-fold distinction is not useful and is not made in local languages.
The term "banana" is also used as the common name for the plants which produce the fruit.[3] This can extend to other members of the genus Musa like the scarlet banana (Musa coccinea), pink banana (Musa velutina) and the Fe'i bananas. It can also refer to members of the genus Ensete, like the snow banana (Ensete glaucum) and the economically important false banana (Ensete ventricosum). Both genera are classified under the banana family, Musaceae.
Description
![Photo of a banana corm growing from loamy soil](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Banana_corm.jpg/170px-Banana_corm.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/73/M._acuminata_x_balbisiana_female_flower_detail.jpg/220px-M._acuminata_x_balbisiana_female_flower_detail.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/Bananas_white_background.jpg/220px-Bananas_white_background.jpg)
The banana plant is the largest herbaceous flowering plant.[7] All the above-ground parts of a banana plant grow from a structure usually called a "corm".[8] Plants are normally tall and fairly sturdy, and are often mistaken for trees, but what appears to be a trunk is actually a "false stem" or pseudostem. Bananas grow in a wide variety of soils, as long as the soil is at least 60 cm deep, has good drainage and is not compacted.[9] The leaves of banana plants are composed of a "stalk" (petiole) and a blade (lamina). The base of the petiole widens to form a sheath; the tightly packed sheaths make up the pseudostem, which is all that supports the plant. The edges of the sheath meet when it is first produced, making it tubular. As new growth occurs in the centre of the pseudostem the edges are forced apart.[10] Cultivated banana plants vary in height depending on the variety and growing conditions. Most are around 5 m (16 ft) tall, with a range from 'Dwarf Cavendish' plants at around 3 m (10 ft) to 'Gros Michel' at 7 m (23 ft) or more.[11][12] Leaves are spirally arranged and may grow 2.7 metres (8.9 ft) long and 60 cm (2.0 ft) wide.[1] They are easily torn by the wind, resulting in the familiar frond look.[13]
When a banana plant is mature, the corm stops producing new leaves and begins to form a flower spike or inflorescence. A stem develops which grows up inside the pseudostem, carrying the immature inflorescence until eventually it emerges at the top.[14] Each pseudostem normally produces a single inflorescence, also known as the "banana heart". (More are sometimes produced; an exceptional plant in the Philippines produced five.[15]) After fruiting, the pseudostem dies, but offshoots will normally have developed from the base, so that the plant as a whole is perennial. In the plantation system of cultivation, only one of the offshoots will be allowed to develop in order to maintain spacing.[16] The inflorescence contains many bracts (sometimes incorrectly referred to as petals) between rows of flowers. The female flowers (which can develop into fruit) appear in rows further up the stem (closer to the leaves) from the rows of male flowers. The ovary is inferior, meaning that the tiny petals and other flower parts appear at the tip of the ovary.[17]
The banana fruits develop from the banana heart, in a large hanging cluster, made up of tiers (called "hands"), with up to 20 fruit to a tier. The hanging cluster is known as a bunch, comprising 3–20 tiers, or commercially as a "banana stem", and can weigh 30–50 kilograms (66–110 lb). Individual banana fruits (commonly known as a banana or "finger") average 125 grams (0.276 lb), of which approximately 75% is water and 25% dry matter.[citation needed]
The fruit has been described as a "leathery berry".[18] There is a protective outer layer (a peel or skin) with numerous long, thin strings (the phloem bundles), which run lengthwise between the skin and the edible inner portion. The inner part of the common yellow dessert variety can be split lengthwise into three sections that correspond to the inner portions of the three carpels by manually deforming the unopened fruit.[19] In cultivated varieties, the seeds are diminished nearly to non-existence; their remnants are tiny black specks in the interior of the fruit.[20]
Bananas are naturally slightly radioactive,[21][22] more so than most other fruits, because of their potassium content and the small amounts of the isotope potassium-40 found in naturally occurring potassium.[23] The banana equivalent dose of radiation is sometimes used in nuclear communication to compare radiation levels and exposures.[24]
Etymology
The word banana is thought to be of West African origin, possibly from the Wolof word banaana, and passed into English via Spanish or Portuguese.[25]
Taxonomy
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Banana_Tree_01.jpg/170px-Banana_Tree_01.jpg)
The genus Musa was created by Carl Linnaeus in 1753.[26] The name may be derived from Antonius Musa, physician to the Emperor Augustus, or Linnaeus may have adapted the Arabic word for banana, mauz.[27] Musa is in the family Musaceae. The APG III system assigns Musaceae to the order Zingiberales, part of the commelinid clade of the monocotyledonous flowering plants. Some 70 species of Musa were recognized by the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families as of January 2013[update];[26] several produce edible fruit, while others are cultivated as ornamentals.[28]
The classification of cultivated bananas has long been a problematic issue for taxonomists. Linnaeus originally placed bananas into two species based only on their uses as food: Musa sapientum for dessert bananas and Musa paradisiaca for plantains. Subsequently further species names were added. However, this approach proved inadequate to address the sheer number of cultivars existing in the primary center of diversity of the genus, Southeast Asia. Many of these cultivars were given names which proved to be synonyms.[29]
In a series of papers published in 1947 onwards, Ernest Cheesman showed that Linnaeus's Musa sapientum and Musa paradisiaca were actually cultivars and descendants of two wild seed-producing species, Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana, both first described by Luigi Aloysius Colla.[30] He recommended the abolition of Linnaeus's species in favor of reclassifying bananas according to three morphologically distinct groups of cultivars – those primarily exhibiting the botanical characteristics of Musa balbisiana, those primarily exhibiting the botanical characteristics of Musa acuminata, and those with characteristics that are the combination of the two.[29] Researchers Norman Simmonds and Ken Shepherd proposed a genome-based nomenclature system in 1955. This system eliminated almost all the difficulties and inconsistencies of the earlier classification of bananas based on assigning scientific names to cultivated varieties. Despite this, the original names are still recognized by some authorities today, leading to confusion.[30][31]
The currently accepted scientific names for most groups of cultivated bananas are Musa acuminata Colla and Musa balbisiana Colla for the ancestral species, and Musa × paradisiaca L. for the hybrid M. acuminata × M. balbisiana.[32]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Nedravazhakola.jpg/220px-Nedravazhakola.jpg)
Synonyms of M. × paradisica include:
- A large number of subspecific and varietial names of M. × paradisiaca, including M. p. subsp. sapientum (L.) Kuntze
- Musa × dacca Horan.
- Musa × sapidisiaca K.C.Jacob, nom. superfl.
- Musa × sapientum L., and a large number of its varietal names, including M. × sapientum var. paradisiaca (L.) Baker, nom. illeg.
Generally, modern classifications of banana cultivars follow Simmonds and Shepherd's system. Cultivars are placed in groups based on the number of chromosomes they have and which species they are derived from. Thus the Latundan banana is placed in the AAB Group, showing that it is a triploid derived from both M. acuminata (A) and M. balbisiana (B). For a list of the cultivars classified under this system see List of banana cultivars.
In 2012, a team of scientists announced they had achieved a draft sequence of the genome of Musa acuminata.[33]
Bananas and plantains
In regions such as North America and Europe, Musa fruits offered for sale can be divided into "bananas" and "plantains", based on their intended use as food. Thus the banana producer and distributor Chiquita produces publicity material for the American market which says that "a plantain is not a banana". The stated differences are that plantains are more starchy and less sweet; they are eaten cooked rather than raw; they have thicker skin, which may be green, yellow or black; and they can be used at any stage of ripeness.[34] Linnaeus made the same distinction between plantains and bananas when first naming two "species" of Musa.[35] Members of the "plantain subgroup" of banana cultivars, most important as food in West Africa and Latin America, correspond to the Chiquita description, having long pointed fruit. They are described by Ploetz et al. as "true" plantains, distinct from other cooking bananas.[36] The cooking bananas of East Africa belong to a different group, the East African Highland bananas,[12] so would not qualify as "true" plantains on this definition.
An alternative approach divides bananas into dessert bananas and cooking bananas, with plantains being one of the subgroups of cooking bananas.[37] Triploid cultivars derived solely from M. acuminata are examples of "dessert bananas", whereas triploid cultivars derived from the hybrid between M. acuminata and M. balbinosa (in particular the plantain subgroup of the AAB Group) are "plantains".[38][39] Small farmers in Colombia grow a much wider range of cultivars than large commercial plantations. A study of these cultivars showed that they could be placed into at least three groups based on their characteristics: dessert bananas, non-plantain cooking bananas, and plantains, although there were overlaps between dessert and cooking bananas.[40]
In Southeast Asia – the center of diversity for bananas, both wild and cultivated – the distinction between "bananas" and "plantains" does not work, according to Valmayor et al. Many bananas are used both raw and cooked. There are starchy cooking bananas which are smaller than those eaten raw. The range of colors, sizes and shapes is far wider than in those grown or sold in Africa, Europe or the Americas.[35] Southeast Asian languages do not make the distinction between "bananas" and "plantains" that is made in English (and Spanish). Thus both Cavendish cultivars, the classic yellow dessert bananas, and Saba cultivars, used mainly for cooking, are called pisang in Malaysia and Indonesia, kluai in Thailand and chuoi in Vietnam.[41] Fe'i bananas, grown and eaten in the islands of the Pacific, are derived from entirely different wild species than traditional bananas and plantains. Most Fe'i bananas are cooked, but Karat bananas, which are short and squat with bright red skins, very different from the usual yellow dessert bananas, are eaten raw.[42]
In summary, in commerce in Europe and the Americas (although not in small-scale cultivation), it is possible to distinguish between "bananas", which are eaten raw, and "plantains", which are cooked. In other regions of the world, particularly India, Southeast Asia and the islands of the Pacific, there are many more kinds of banana and the two-fold distinction is not useful and not made in local languages. Plantains are one of many kinds of cooking bananas, which are not always distinct from dessert bananas.
Historical cultivation
Early cultivation
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Banana_ancestors_%28Musa_acuminata_and_Musa_balbisiana%29_original_range.png/220px-Banana_ancestors_%28Musa_acuminata_and_Musa_balbisiana%29_original_range.png)
Farmers in Southeast Asia and Papua New Guinea first domesticated bananas. Recent archaeological and palaeoenvironmental evidence at Kuk Swamp in the Western Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea suggests that banana cultivation there goes back to at least 5000 BCE, and possibly to 8000 BCE.[4][44] It is likely that other species were later and independently domesticated elsewhere in Southeast Asia. Southeast Asia is the region of primary diversity of the banana. Areas of secondary diversity are found in Africa, indicating a long history of banana cultivation in the region.[45]
Phytolith discoveries in Cameroon dating to the first millennium BCE[47] triggered an as yet unresolved debate about the date of first cultivation in Africa. There is linguistic evidence that bananas were known in Madagascar around that time.[48] The earliest prior evidence indicates that cultivation dates to no earlier than late 6th century CE.[49] It is likely, however, that bananas were brought at least to Madagascar if not to the East African coast during the phase of Malagasy colonization of the island from South East Asia c. 400 CE.[50]
The banana may also have been present in isolated locations elsewhere in the Middle East on the eve of Islam. The spread of Islam was followed by far-reaching diffusion. There are numerous references to it in Islamic texts (such as poems and hadiths) beginning in the 9th century. By the 10th century the banana appears in texts from Palestine and Egypt. From there it diffused into North Africa and Muslim Iberia. During the medieval ages, bananas from Granada were considered among the best in the Arab world.[46] In 650, Islamic conquerors brought the banana to Palestine. Today, banana consumption increases significantly in Islamic countries during Ramadan, the month of daylight fasting.[51]
Bananas were certainly grown in the Christian Kingdom of Cyprus by the late medieval period. Writing in 1458, the Italian traveller and writer Gabriele Capodilista wrote favourably of the extensive farm produce of the estates at Episkopi, near modern day Limassol, including the region's banana plantations.[52]
Bananas were introduced to the Americas by Portuguese sailors who brought the fruits from West Africa in the 16th century.[53]
Many wild banana species as well as cultivars exist in extraordinary diversity in New Guinea, Malaysia, Indonesia, China, and the Philippines.
There are fuzzy bananas whose skins are bubblegum pink; green-and-white striped bananas with pulp the color of orange sherbet; bananas that, when cooked, taste like strawberries. The Double Mahoi plant can produce two bunches at once. The Chinese name of the aromatic Go San Heong banana means 'You can smell it from the next mountain.' The fingers on one banana plant grow fused; another produces bunches of a thousand fingers, each only an inch long.
— Mike Peed, The New Yorker[54]
In 1999 archaeologists in London discovered what they believed to be the oldest banana in the UK, in a Tudor rubbish tip.[55]
Plantation cultivation in the Caribbean, Central and South America
![Photo of two cross-sectional halves of seed-filled fruit.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/eb/Inside_a_wild-type_banana.jpg/220px-Inside_a_wild-type_banana.jpg)
In the 15th and 16th centuries, Portuguese colonists started banana plantations in the Atlantic Islands, Brazil, and western Africa.[56] North Americans began consuming bananas on a small scale at very high prices shortly after the Civil War, though it was only in the 1880s that it became more widespread.[57] As late as the Victorian Era, bananas were not widely known in Europe, although they were available.[56] Jules Verne introduces bananas to his readers with detailed descriptions in Around the World in Eighty Days (1872).
The earliest modern plantations originated in Jamaica and the related Western Caribbean Zone, including most of Central America. It involved the combination of modern transportation networks of steamships and railroads with the development of refrigeration that allowed bananas to have more time between harvesting and ripening. North America shippers like Lorenzo Dow Baker and Andrew Preston, the founders of the Boston Fruit Company started this process in the 1870s, but railroad builders like Minor C Keith also participated, eventually culminating in the multi-national giant corporations like today's Chiquita Brands International and Dole.[57] These companies were monopolistic, vertically integrated (meaning they controlled growing, processing, shipping and marketing) and usually used political manipulation to build enclave economies (economies that were internally self-sufficient, virtually tax exempt, and export oriented that contribute very little to the host economy). Their political maneuvers, which gave rise to the term Banana republic for states like Honduras and Guatemala, included working with local elites and their rivalries to influence politics or playing the international interests of the United States, especially during the Cold War, to keep the political climate favorable to their interests.[58]
Peasant cultivation for export in the Caribbean
The vast majority of the world's bananas today are cultivated for family consumption or for sale on local markets. India is the world leader in this sort of production, but many other Asian and African countries where climate and soil conditions allow cultivation also host large populations of banana growers who sell at least some of their crop.[59]
There are peasant sector banana growers who produce for the world market in the Caribbean, however. The Windward Islands are notable for the growing, largely of Cavendish bananas, for an international market, generally in Europe but also in North America. In the Caribbean, and especially in Dominica where this sort of cultivation is widespread, holdings are in the 1–2 acre range. In many cases the farmer earns additional money from other crops, from engaging in labor outside the farm, and from a share of the earnings of relatives living overseas. This style of cultivation often was popular in the islands as bananas required little labor input and brought welcome extra income.[citation needed] Banana crops are vulnerable to destruction by high winds, such as tropical storms or cyclones.[60]
After the signing of the NAFTA agreements in the 1990s, however, the tide turned against peasant producers. Their costs of production were relatively high and the ending of favorable tariff and other supports, especially in the European Economic Community, made it difficult for peasant producers to compete with the bananas grown on large plantations by the well capitalized firms like Chiquita and Dole. Not only did the large companies have access to cheap labor in the areas they worked, but they were better able to afford modern agronomic advances such as fertilization. The "dollar banana" produced by these concerns made the profit margins for peasant bananas unsustainable.[citation needed]
Caribbean countries have sought to redress this problem by providing government supported agronomic services and helping to organize producers' cooperatives. They have also been supporters of the Fair Trade movement which seeks to balance the inequities in the world trade in commodities.[citation needed]
East Africa
Most farms supply local consumption. Cooking bananas represent a major food source and a major income source for smallhold farmers. In east Africa, highland bananas are of greatest importance as a staple food crop. In countries such as Uganda, Burundi, and Rwanda per capita consumption has been estimated at 45 kilograms (99 lb) per year, the highest in the world.[citation needed]
Modern cultivation
All widely cultivated bananas today descend from the two wild bananas Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana. While the original wild bananas contained large seeds, diploid or polyploid cultivars (some being hybrids) with tiny seeds are preferred for human raw fruit consumption.[61] These are propagated asexually from offshoots. The plant is allowed to produce two shoots at a time; a larger one for immediate fruiting and a smaller "sucker" or "follower" to produce fruit in 6–8 months. The life of a banana plantation is 25 years or longer, during which time the individual stools or planting sites may move slightly from their original positions as lateral rhizome formation dictates.[citation needed]
Cultivated bananas are parthenocarpic, i.e. the flesh of the fruit swells and ripens without its seeds being fertilized and developing. Lacking viable seeds, propagation typically involves farmers removing and transplanting part of the underground stem (called a corm). Usually this is done by carefully removing a sucker (a vertical shoot that develops from the base of the banana pseudostem) with some roots intact. However, small sympodial corms, representing not yet elongated suckers, are easier to transplant and can be left out of the ground for up to two weeks; they require minimal care and can be shipped in bulk.[citation needed]
It is not necessary to include the corm or root structure to propagate bananas; severed suckers without root material can be propagated in damp sand, although this takes somewhat longer.[citation needed]
In some countries, commercial propagation occurs by means of tissue culture. This method is preferred since it ensures disease-free planting material. When using vegetative parts such as suckers for propagation, there is a risk of transmitting diseases (especially the devastating Panama disease).[citation needed]
As a non-seasonal crop, bananas are available fresh year-round.[citation needed]
Cavendish
![Grocery store photo of several bunches of bananas](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Bananas.jpg/220px-Bananas.jpg)
In global commerce in 2009, by far the most important cultivars belonged to the triploid AAA group of Musa acuminata, commonly referred to as Cavendish group bananas. They accounted for the majority of banana exports,[61] despite only coming into existence in 1836.[62] The cultivars Dwarf Cavendish and Grand Nain (Chiquita Banana) gained popularity in the 1950s after the previous mass-produced cultivar, Gros Michel (also an AAA group cultivar), became commercially unviable due to Panama disease, caused by the fungus Fusarium oxysporum which attacks the roots of the banana plant.[61] Cavendish cultivars are resistant to the Panama Disease but in 2013 there were fears that the Black Sigatoka fungus would in turn make Cavendish bananas unviable.[63]
Ease of transport and shelf life rather than superior taste make the Dwarf Cavendish the main export banana.[citation needed]
Even though it is no longer viable for large scale cultivation, Gros Michel is not extinct and is still grown in areas where Panama disease is not found.[64] Likewise, Dwarf Cavendish and Grand Nain are in no danger of extinction, but they may leave supermarket shelves if disease makes it impossible to supply the global market. It is unclear if any existing cultivar can replace Cavendish bananas, so various hybridisation and genetic engineering programs are attempting to create a disease-resistant, mass-market banana.[61]
Ripening
Export bananas are picked green, and ripen in special rooms upon arrival in the destination country. These rooms are air-tight and filled with ethylene gas to induce ripening. The vivid yellow color consumers normally associate with supermarket bananas is, in fact, caused by the artificial ripening process.[65][66] Flavor and texture are also affected by ripening temperature. Bananas are refrigerated to between 13.5 and 15 °C (56.3 and 59.0 °F) during transport. At lower temperatures, ripening permanently stalls, and the bananas turn gray as cell walls break down. The skin of ripe bananas quickly blackens in the 4 °C (39 °F) environment of a domestic refrigerator, although the fruit inside remains unaffected.
![Two adjacent photos of bananas. The left is in sunlight; the right is under ultraviolet light.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Banana-fluorescence-081108.jpg/220px-Banana-fluorescence-081108.jpg)
"Tree-ripened" Cavendish bananas have a greenish-yellow appearance which changes to a brownish-yellow as they ripen further. Although both flavor and texture of tree-ripened bananas is generally regarded as superior to any type of green-picked fruit,[citation needed] this reduces shelf life to only 7–10 days.[citation needed]
Bananas can be ordered by the retailer "ungassed" (i.e. not treated with ethylene), and may show up at the supermarket fully green. [Guineos verdes] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (green bananas) that have not been gassed will never fully ripen before becoming rotten. Instead of fresh eating, these bananas are best suited to cooking, as seen in Mexican culinary dishes.[citation needed]
A 2008 study reported that ripe bananas fluoresce when exposed to ultraviolet light. This property is attributed to the degradation of chlorophyll leading to the accumulation of a fluorescent product in the skin of the fruit. The chlorophyll breakdown product is stabilized by a propionate ester group. Banana-plant leaves also fluoresce in the same way. Green bananas do not fluoresce. The study suggested that this allows animals which can see light in the ultraviolet spectrum (tetrachromats and pentachromats) to more easily detect ripened bananas.[67]
Storage and transport
Bananas must be transported over long distances from the tropics to world markets. To obtain maximum shelf life, harvest comes before the fruit is mature. The fruit requires careful handling, rapid transport to ports, cooling, and refrigerated shipping. The goal is to prevent the bananas from producing their natural ripening agent, ethylene. This technology allows storage and transport for 3–4 weeks at 13 °C (55 °F). On arrival, bananas are held at about 17 °C (63 °F) and treated with a low concentration of ethylene. After a few days, the fruit begins to ripen and is distributed for final sale. Unripe bananas can not be held in home refrigerators because they suffer from the cold.[citation needed] Ripe bananas can be held for a few days at home. If bananas are too green, they can be put in a brown paper bag with an apple or tomato overnight to speed up the ripening process.[68]
Carbon dioxide (which bananas produce) and ethylene absorbents extend fruit life even at high temperatures. This effect can be exploited by packing banana in a polyethylene bag and including an ethylene absorbent, e.g., potassium permanganate, on an inert carrier. The bag is then sealed with a band or string. This treatment has been shown to more than double lifespans up to 3–4 weeks without the need for refrigeration.[69][70][71]
Production and export
Country | Millions of tonnes |
Percentage of world total |
---|---|---|
Table 1: Production | ||
![]() |
29.7 | 20% |
![]() |
11.1 | 8% |
![]() |
10.7 | 7% |
![]() |
9.2 | 6% |
![]() |
8.0 | 6% |
![]() |
7.3 | 5% |
![]() |
6.1 | 4% |
![]() |
5.1 | 4% |
![]() |
4.8 | 3% |
![]() |
3.9 | 3% |
All other countries | 49.6 | 34% |
Total world | 145.4 | 100% |
Table 2: Exports | ||
![]() |
5.2 | 29% |
![]() |
1.8 | 10% |
![]() |
1.8 | 10% |
![]() |
1.6 | 9% |
![]() |
1.5 | 8% |
All other countries | 6.0 | 34% |
Total world | 17.9 | 100% |
Statistics on the production and export of bananas and plantains are available from the Food and Agriculture Organization. Some countries produce statistics which distinguish between bananas and plantains, but three of the top four producers (India, China and the Philippines) do not, so comparisons can only be made using the total for bananas and plantains combined. The 2011 statistics (see Table 1) show that India led the world in banana production, producing around 20% of the worldwide crop of 145 million metric tonnes. Uganda was the next largest producer with around 8% of the worldwide crop. Its national data does distinguish between bananas and plantains, and shows that the latter made up over 95% of production. Ten countries produced around two thirds of the total world production.[Note 1]
The statistics for the export of bananas and plantains show a rather different picture (see Table 2). Total world exports at around 18 million metric tonnes amounted to only 12% of total world production; two thirds of the exports were generated by only five countries. The top three producing countries do not appear in this table, and two countries, Costa Rica and Guatemala, do not appear in the table of top producers. Only the Philippines has a consistent position in both tables. Exports were dominated by Ecuador, with 29% of the world total. Statistics for Ecuador distinguish between bananas and plantains; 93% of its exports were classified as bananas.[Note 1]
Bananas and plantains constitute a major staple food crop for millions of people in developing countries. In most tropical countries, green (unripe) bananas used for cooking represent the main cultivars. Bananas are cooked in ways that are similar to potatoes. Both can be fried, boiled, baked, or chipped and have similar taste and texture when served. One banana provides about the same calories as one potato.[citation needed]
Most producers are small-scale farmers either for home consumption or local markets. Because bananas and plantains produce fruit year-round, they provide an extremely valuable food source during the hunger season (when the food from one annual/semi-annual harvest has been consumed, and the next is still to come). Bananas and plantains are therefore critical to global food security.
Bananas have been an important source of disagreement in the Doha Round of trade talks. A study for ICTSD showed that the new deal on EU banana import tariffs will be a boon to Latin American exporters but would trigger a drop in exports of the fruit from African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries.[72]
Bananas are among the most widely consumed foods in the world. Chiquita, Del Monte, Dole, and Fyffes grow their own bananas in Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Honduras. Banana plantations are capital intensive and demand significant expertise. The majority of independent growers are large and wealthy landowners in these countries. Producers have attempted to raise prices via marketing them as "fair trade" or Rainforest Alliance-certified in some countries.[citation needed]
The banana has an extensive trade history starting with firms such as the Irish Fyffes and the US United Fruit Company (now Chiquita) at the end of the 19th century. For much of the 20th century, bananas and coffee dominated the export economies of Central America. In the 1930s, bananas and coffee made up as much as 75% of the region's exports. As late as 1960, the two crops accounted for 67% of the exports from the region. Though the two were grown in similar regions, they tended not to be distributed together. The United Fruit Company based its business almost entirely on the banana trade, because the coffee trade proved too difficult to control. The term "banana republic" has been applied to most countries in Central America, but from a strict economic perspective only Costa Rica, Honduras, and Panama had economies dominated by the banana trade.[citation needed]
The European Union has traditionally imported many of its bananas from former European Caribbean colonies, paying guaranteed prices above global market rates (see Lomé Convention). These arrangements have now been largely withdrawn under pressure from other major trading powers, principally the United States. The withdrawal of these indirect subsidies to Caribbean producers is expected to favour the more efficient banana producers of Central America, in which American companies have an economic interest. In addition, small-scale Caribbean producers are finding it difficult to comply with increasingly strict certification requirements. Some support is being provided to Caribbean countries under the EU's Banana Accompanying Measures (BAM).[73]
The United States produces few bananas. A mere 14,000 tonnes (14,000 long tons; 15,000 short tons) were grown in Hawaii in 2001.[74] Bananas were once grown in Florida and southern California.[75]
In March 2014 it was announced that Fyffes and Chiquita would merge to create the world's largest banana company, worth about $1bn (£597m). The new firm, named ChiquitaFyffes, is expected to sell about 160 million boxes of bananas annually.[76]
Pests, diseases, and natural disasters
![Photo of bananas in blue plastic bag](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e4/BananasBlueBagStLucia.jpg/170px-BananasBlueBagStLucia.jpg)
While in no danger of outright extinction, the most common edible banana cultivar Cavendish (extremely popular in Europe and the Americas) could become unviable for large-scale cultivation in the next 10–20 years. Its predecessor 'Gros Michel', discovered in the 1820s, suffered this fate. Like almost all bananas, Cavendish lacks genetic diversity, which makes it vulnerable to diseases, threatening both commercial cultivation and small-scale subsistence farming.[77][78] Some commentators remarked that those variants which could replace what much of the world considers a "typical banana" are so different that most people would not consider them the same fruit, and blame the decline of the banana on monogenetic cultivation driven by short-term commercial motives.[58]
Panama disease
Panama disease is caused by a fusarium soil fungus (Race 1), which enters the plants through the roots and travels with water into the trunk and leaves, producing gels and gums that cut off the flow of water and nutrients, causing the plant to wilt, and exposing the rest of the plant to lethal amounts of sunlight. Prior to 1960, almost all commercial banana production centered on "Gros Michel", which was highly susceptible.[79] Cavendish was chosen as the replacement for Gros Michel because, among resistant cultivars, it produces the highest quality fruit. However, more care is required for shipping the Cavendish, and its quality compared to Gros Michel is debated.[by whom?][citation needed]
According to current sources, a deadly form of Panama disease is infecting Cavendish. All plants are genetically identical, which prevents evolution of disease resistance. Researchers are examining hundreds of wild varieties for resistance.[79]
Tropical race 4
Tropical race 4 (TR4) is a reinvigorated strain of Panama disease first discovered in 1993. This virulent form of fusarium wilt has wiped out Cavendish in several southeast Asian countries. It has yet to reach the Americas; however, soil fungi can easily be carried on boots, clothing, or tools. This is how TR4 travels and is its most likely route into Latin America. Cavendish is highly susceptible to TR4, and over time, Cavendish is almost certain to be eliminated from commercial production by this disease. The only known defense to TR4 is genetic resistance.[80]
Black sigatoka
Black sigatoka is a fungal leaf spot disease first observed in Fiji in 1963 or 1964. Black Sigatoka (also known as black leaf streak) has spread to banana plantations throughout the tropics from infected banana leaves that were used as packing material. It affects all main cultivars of bananas and plantains (including the Cavendish cultivars[63]), impeding photosynthesis by blackening parts of the leaves, eventually killing the entire leaf. Starved for energy, fruit production falls by 50% or more, and the bananas that do grow ripen prematurely, making them unsuitable for export. The fungus has shown ever-increasing resistance to treatment, with the current expense for treating 1 hectare (2.5 acres) exceeding $1,000 per year. In addition to the expense, there is the question of how long intensive spraying can be environmentally justified. Several resistant cultivars of banana have been developed, but none has yet received commercial acceptance due to taste and texture issues.[citation needed]
In East Africa
With the arrival of Black sigatoka, banana production in eastern Africa fell by over 40%. For example, during the 1970s, Uganda produced 15 to 20 tonnes (15 to 20 long tons; 17 to 22 short tons) of bananas per hectare. Today, production has fallen to only 6 tonnes (5.9 long tons; 6.6 short tons) per hectare.[citation needed]
The situation has started to improve as new disease-resistant cultivars have been developed by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture and the National Agricultural Research Organisation of Uganda (NARO), such as FHIA-17 (known in Uganda as the Kabana 3). These new cultivars taste different from the Cabana banana, which has slowed their acceptance by local farmers. However, by adding mulch and manure to the soil around the base of the plant, these new cultivars have substantially increased yields in the areas where they have been tried.[citation needed]
The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture and NARO, funded by the Rockefeller Foundation and CGIAR have started trials for genetically modified bananas that are resistant to both Black sigatoka and banana weevils. It is developing cultivars specifically for smallholder and subsistence farmers.[citation needed]
Banana bunchy top virus
Banana bunchy top virus (BBTV) jumps from plant to plant using aphids. It stunts leaves, resulting in a "bunched" appearance. Generally, an infected plant does not produce fruit, although mild strains exist which allow some production. These mild strains are often mistaken for malnourishment, or a disease other than BBTV. There is no cure; however, its effect can be minimized by planting only tissue-cultured plants (in vitro propagation), controlling aphids, and immediately removing and destroying infected plants.[citation needed]
Banana bacterial wilt
Banana bacterial wilt (BBW) is a bacterial disease caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. musacearum.[81] After being originally identified on a close relative of bananas, Ensete ventricosum, in Ethiopia in the 1960s,[82] BBW occurred in Uganda in 2001 affecting all banana cultivars. Since then BBW has been diagnosed in Central and East Africa including the banana growing regions of Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, Burundi, and Uganda.[83]
Nutrition
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Energy | 371 kJ (89 kcal) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
22.84 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sugars | 12.23 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dietary fiber | 2.6 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
0.33 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1.09 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Other constituents | Quantity | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fluoride | 2.2 µg | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
†Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults,[84] except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies.[85] |
Bananas are an excellent source of vitamin B6, soluble fiber, and contain moderate amounts of vitamin C, manganese and potassium.[86] Banana ingestion may affect dopamine production in people deficient in the amino acid tyrosine, a dopamine precursor present in bananas.[87][88] Individuals with a latex allergy may experience a reaction to bananas.[89]
Culture
Food and cooking
Fruit
Bananas are a staple starch for many tropical populations. Depending upon cultivar and ripeness, the flesh can vary in taste from starchy to sweet, and texture from firm to mushy. Both the skin and inner part can be eaten raw or cooked. The primary component of the aroma of fresh bananas is isoamyl acetate (also known as banana oil), which, along with several other compounds such as butyl acetate and isobutyl acetate, is a significant contributor to banana flavor.[90][91][92]
During the ripening process, bananas produce the gas ethylene, which acts as a plant hormone and indirectly affects the flavor. Among other things, ethylene stimulates the formation of amylase, an enzyme that breaks down starch into sugar, influencing the taste of bananas. The greener, less ripe bananas contain higher levels of starch and, consequently, have a "starchier" taste. On the other hand, yellow bananas taste sweeter due to higher sugar concentrations. Furthermore, ethylene signals the production of pectinase, an enzyme which breaks down the pectin between the cells of the banana, causing the banana to soften as it ripens.[93][94]
Bananas are eaten deep fried, baked in their skin in a split bamboo, or steamed in glutinous rice wrapped in a banana leaf. Bananas can be made into jam. Banana pancakes are popular amongst backpackers and other travelers in South Asia and Southeast Asia. This has elicited the expression Banana Pancake Trail for those places in Asia that cater to this group of travelers. Banana chips are a snack produced from sliced dehydrated or fried banana or plantain, which have a dark brown color and an intense banana taste. Dried bananas are also ground to make banana flour. Extracting juice is difficult, because when a banana is compressed, it simply turns to pulp. Bananas feature prominently in Philippine cuisine, being part of traditional dishes and desserts like maruya, turrón, and halo-halo or saba con yelo. Most of these dishes use the Saba or Cardaba banana cultivar. Bananas are also commonly used in cuisine in the South-Indian state of Kerala, where they are steamed (puzhungiyathu), made into curries,[95] fried into chips (upperi)[96] or fried in batter (pazhampori).[97] Pisang goreng, bananas fried with batter similar to the Filipino maruya or Kerala pazhampori, is a popular dessert in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. A similar dish is known in the United Kingdom and United States as banana fritters.
Plantains are used in various stews and curries or cooked, baked or mashed in much the same way as potatoes, such as the Pazham Pachadi prepared in Kerala.[95]
Seeded bananas (Musa balbisiana), one of the forerunners of the common domesticated banana,[98] are sold in markets in Indonesia.[citation needed]
Flower
Banana hearts are used as a vegetable[99] in South Asian and Southeast Asian cuisine, either raw or steamed with dips or cooked in soups, curries and fried foods.[100] The flavor resembles that of artichoke. As with artichokes, both the fleshy part of the bracts and the heart are edible.[101]
Leaves
Banana leaves are large, flexible, and waterproof. They are often used as ecologically friendly disposable food containers or as "plates" in South Asia and several Southeast Asian countries. In Indonesian cuisine, banana leaf is employed in cooking method called pepes and botok; the banana leaf packages containing food ingredients and spices are cooked on steam, in boiled water or grilled on charcoal. In the South Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala in every occasion the food must be served in a banana leaf and as a part of the food a banana is served. Steamed with dishes they impart a subtle sweet flavor. They often serve as a wrapping for grilling food. The leaves contain the juices, protect food from burning and add a subtle flavor.[102] In Tamil Nadu (India) leaves are fully dried and used as packing material for food stuffs and also making cups to hold liquid foods. In Central American countries, banana leaves are often used as wrappers for tamales.[citation needed]
Trunk
The tender core of the banana plant's trunk is also used in South Asian and Southeast Asian cuisine, and notably in the Burmese dish mohinga.
-
Peeled, whole, and longitudinal section
-
Kilawin na pusô ng saging, a Filipino dish using banana flowers
-
Nicaraguan Nacatamales, in banana leaves, ready to be steamed
-
Kaeng yuak is a northern Thai curry made with the core of the banana plant
-
Pisang goreng fried banana coated in batter, popular snack in Indonesia
-
Banana in sweet gravy, known as pengat pisang in Malay. Popular along Malaysia's east coast
Fiber
Textiles
The banana plant has long been a source of fiber for high quality textiles. In Japan, banana cultivation for clothing and household use dates back to at least the 13th century. In the Japanese system, leaves and shoots are cut from the plant periodically to ensure softness. Harvested shoots are first boiled in lye to prepare fibers for yarn-making. These banana shoots produce fibers of varying degrees of softness, yielding yarns and textiles with differing qualities for specific uses. For example, the outermost fibers of the shoots are the coarsest, and are suitable for tablecloths, while the softest innermost fibers are desirable for kimono and kamishimo. This traditional Japanese cloth-making process requires many steps, all performed by hand.[103]
In a Nepalese system the trunk is harvested instead, and small pieces are subjected to a softening process, mechanical fiber extraction, bleaching and drying. After that, the fibers are sent to the Kathmandu Valley for use in rugs with a silk-like texture. These banana fiber rugs are woven by traditional Nepalese hand-knotting methods, and are sold RugMark certified.[citation needed]
In South Indian state of Tamil Nadu after harvesting for fruit the trunk (outer layer of the shoot) is made into fine thread used in making of flower garlands instead of thread.[citation needed]
Paper
Banana fiber is used in the production of banana paper. Banana paper is made from two different parts: the bark of the banana plant, mainly used for artistic purposes, or from the fibers of the stem and non-usable fruits. The paper is either hand-made or by industrial process.[citation needed]
Cultural roles
Arts
- The song "Yes! We Have No Bananas" was written by Frank Silver and Irving Cohn and originally released in 1923; for many decades, it was the best-selling sheet music in history. Since then the song has been rerecorded several times and has been particularly popular during banana shortages.[104][105]
- A person slipping on a banana peel has been a staple of physical comedy for generations. A 1910 USA comedy recording features a popular character of the time, "Uncle Josh", claiming to describe his own such incident:[106]
Now I don't think much of the man that throws a banana peelin' on the sidewalk, and I don't think much of the banana peel that throws a man on the sidewalk neither ... my foot hit the bananer peelin' and I went up in the air, and I come down ker-plunk, jist as I was pickin' myself up a little boy come runnin' across the street ... he says, "Oh mister, won't you please do that agin? My little brother didn't see you do it."
- The poet Bashō is named after the Japanese word for a banana plant. The "bashō" planted in his garden by a grateful student became a source of inspiration to his poetry, as well as a symbol of his life and home.[107]
- The cover artwork for the debut album of The Velvet Underground features a banana made by Andy Warhol. On the original vinyl LP version, the design allowed the listener to "peel" this banana to find a pink, peeled phallic banana on the inside.[108]
Religion and popular beliefs
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/XRF-Tani-.jpg/170px-XRF-Tani-.jpg)
In Burma, bunches of green bananas surrounding a green coconut in a tray form an important part of traditional offerings to the Buddha and the Nats.[citation needed]
In all the important festivals and occasions of Hindus, the serving of bananas plays a prominent part. Traditionally in Tamil marriages, banana plants are tied on both sides of the entrance of houses to bless the newlyweds to be useful to each other.[citation needed] The banana is one of three fruits with this significance, the others being mango and jack fruit.[citation needed]
In Thailand, it is believed that a certain type of banana plants may be inhabited by a spirit, Nang Tani, a type of ghost related to trees and similar plants that manifests itself as a young woman.[109] Often people tie a length of colored satin cloth around the pseudostem of the banana plants.[110]
In Malay folklore, the ghost known as Pontianak is associated with banana plants (pokok pisang), and its spirit is said to reside in them during the day.[111]
Other uses
- Banana sap from the pseudostem, peelings or flesh may be sufficiently sticky for adhesive uses.[citation needed]
- The large leaves may be used as umbrellas.[102]
- Banana peel may have capability to extract heavy metal contamination from river water, similar to other purification materials.[112][113] In 2007, banana peel powder was tested as a means of filtration for heavy metals and radionuclides occurring in water produced by the nuclear and fertilizer industries (cadmium contaminant is present in phosphates). When added and thoroughly mixed for 40 minutes, the powder can remove roughly 65% of heavy metals, and this can be repeated.[114]
Notes
- ^ a b c The figures in the tables were derived from: "FAOSTAT". Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The datasets for bananas and plantains for 2011 were downloaded and combined (the two are not distinguished in many cases). Totals and percentages were then calculated. The number of countries shown was chosen to account for a minimum of 66% of the world total.
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: Unknown parameter|lastauthoramp=
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- ^ Plant Breeding Abstracts. Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux. 1949. p. 162.
- ^ Solomon, C (1998). Encyclopedia of Asian Food (Periplus ed.). Australia: New Holland Publishers. ISBN 0-85561-688-1. Archived from the original on June 3, 2008. Retrieved May 17, 2008.
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suggested) (help) - ^ Fried banana flowers. Duda Online (December 14, 2009). Retrieved on 2011-10-02.
- ^ Molly Watson. "Banana Flowers". About.com. Retrieved May 13, 2014. See also the link on that page for Banana Flower Salad.
- ^ a b "Banana". Hortpurdue.edu. Archived from the original on April 15, 2009. Retrieved April 16, 2009.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
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suggested) (help) - ^ "Traditional Crafts of Japan – Kijoka Banana Fiber Cloth". Association for the Promotion of Traditional Craft Industries. Archived from the original on November 4, 2006. Retrieved December 11, 2006.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
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suggested) (help) - ^ Arnold Shaw (1987). ""Yes! We have No Bananas"/"Charleston" (1923)". The Jazz Age: Popular Music in 1920s. Oxford University Press. p. 132. ISBN 9780195060829.
- ^ Dan Koeppel (2005). "Can This Fruit Be Saved?". Popular Science. 267 (2). Bonnier Corporation: 60–70.
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(help) - ^ Stewart, Cal. "Collected Works of Cal Stewart part 2". Uncle Josh in a Department Store (1910). The Internet Archive. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
- ^ Matsuo Basho: the Master Haiku Poet, Kodansha Europe, ISBN 0-87011-553-7
- ^ Bill DeMain (December 11, 2011). "The Stories Behind 11 Classic Album Covers". mental_floss. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
- ^ "Banana Tree Prai Lady Ghost". Thailand-amulets.net. March 19, 2012. Retrieved August 26, 2012.
- ^ "Spirits". Thaiworldview.com. Retrieved August 26, 2012.
- ^ "Pontianak- South East Asian Vampire". Castleofspirits.com. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
- ^ Minard, Anne (March 11, 2011). "Is That a Banana in Your Water?". National Geographic. Archived from the original on April 26, 2011. Retrieved March 15, 2011.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ Castro, Renata S. D.; Caetano, LaéRcio; Ferreira, Guilherme; Padilha, Pedro M.; Saeki, Margarida J.; Zara, Luiz F.; Martines, Marco Antonio U.; Castro, Gustavo R. (2011). "Banana Peel Applied to the Solid Phase Extraction of Copper and Lead from River Water: Preconcentration of Metal Ions with a Fruit Waste". Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research. 50 (6): 3446. doi:10.1021/ie101499e.
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(help); Unknown parameter|lastauthoramp=
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suggested) (help) - ^ ADIT, BE Brazil (96, 3 April 2007) from Master Thesis of M.R. Boniolo presented at Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (IPEN).
Bibliography
- Nelson, S.C.; Ploetz, R.C.; Kepler, A.K. (2006). "Musa species (bananas and plantains)". In Elevitch, C.R (ed.). Species Profiles for Pacific Island Agroforestry (PDF). Hōlualoa, Hawai'i: Permanent Agriculture Resources (PAR). Retrieved January 10, 2013.
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(help); Unknown parameter|lastauthoramp=
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suggested) (help) - Office of the Gene Technology Regulator (2008). The Biology of Musa L. (banana) (PDF). Australian Government. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
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(help); Unknown parameter|lastauthoramp=
ignored (|name-list-style=
suggested) (help) - Ploetz, R.C.; Kepler, A.K.; Daniells, J.; Nelson, S.C. (2007). "Banana and Plantain: An Overview with Emphasis on Pacific Island Cultivars". In Elevitch, C.R (ed.). Species Profiles for Pacific Island Agroforestry (PDF). Hōlualoa, Hawai'i: Permanent Agriculture Resources (PAR). Retrieved January 10, 2013.
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(help); Unknown parameter|lastauthoramp=
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suggested) (help) - Stover, R.H.; Simmonds, N.W. (1987). Bananas (3rd ed.). Harlow, England: Longman. ISBN 978-0-582-46357-8.
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(help); Unknown parameter|lastauthoramp=
ignored (|name-list-style=
suggested) (help) - Valmayor, Ramón V.; Jamaluddin, S.H.; Silayoi, B.; Kusumo, S.; Danh, L.D.; Pascua, O.C.; Espino, R.R.C. (2000). Banana cultivar names and synonyms in Southeast Asia. Los Baños, Philippines: International Network for Improvement of Banana and Plantain – Asia and the Pacific Office. ISBN 978-971-91751-2-4. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 8, 2013. Retrieved January 8, 2013.
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Further reading
- Dan Koeppel, The New York Times article of June 18, 2008, "Yes, We Will Have No Bananas"
- Harriet Lamb, "Fighting The Banana Wars and other Fairtrade Battles", ISBN 978-1-84604-083-2
External links
- Kew plant profile: Musa acuminata (banana)
- Articles on banana trade at Agritrade
- How the global banana industry is killing the world’s favorite fruit, by Gwynn Guilford of Quartz/MSN News, March 3, 2014