Banana, Musa spp.

Bananas are the most exported fresh fruit in the world, with an annual trade amounting to around 10 billion US dollars. They are an important source of income for thousands of rural households in the Global South. However, the heavy reliance on agrochemicals in production and falling prices for producers have led to significant environmental and social challenges.

A berry from the tropics

The banana is a perennial, herbaceous plant that grows up to six meters high. It does not form a woody stem, but a pseudostem of tightly rolled leaf sheaths. Its large, leathery leaves grow in spirals, while the fruits hang from the plant in large clusters. Botanically speaking, the banana is a berry. The plant requires a tropical climate with regular rainfall and is extremely productive. It reproduces both via seed and vegetatively via shoots that sprout directly from the root system of the mother plant.

Although there are over 1,000 colorful banana varieties worldwide, the Cavendish banana in particular has established itself in the worldwide market and can be found as fruit in many supermarkets. There is an impressive variety of colors, shapes and flavors, ranging from red and blue to small, sweet bananas. This diversity is often overlooked as international trade is mainly focused on this one variety.

Nutritional staple and export hit

The banana originally comes from South East Asia and was cultivated over 7,000 years ago. Traders brought them to Africa and the tropical regions of America. Today, India is the largest producer of fruit bananas, while most plantains are grown in Uganda and the Congo. Plantains are an important staple food in many sub-Saharan African countries, although Latin American countries such as Ecuador and Brazil dominate the export market. They are often grown in monocultures, especially in large plantations geared towards international export. In many tropical countries, the banana also plays an important role as a food staple for local consumption and is grown in numerous gardens.

The wholesome all-rounder

Bananas are rich in nutrients such as potassium, vitamin C and fiber. They support heart health, help regulate blood pressure and are an easily digestible source of energy. In addition, bananas are very popular with athletes and people with digestive problems due to their low fat content and high nutrient density. In culinary terms, they offer a variety of uses: from fresh consumption to the preparation of smoothies, desserts and baked goods. In many tropical countries, plantains are boiled, fried or baked as a starchy staple food. Plantains can be enjoyed as a porridge, such as the breakfast dish mangú from the Dominican Republic. In Asia and Latin America, plantains are also eaten as part of curries, while in Africa they are eaten fried, in soups and stews or as fufu. The culinary options are numerous and varied – an exploration of the huge diversity of plantain dishes is definitely worthwhile.

Did you know: the leaves of banana plants are often used as packaging and plates.

How the Panama disease changed global banana consumption

Until the 1950s, the Gros Michel was the dominant banana variety before it was almost completely wiped out by Panama disease (tropical race 1). To secure the supply, the more resistant Cavendish banana was introduced worldwide, and it is still the most common banana variety on the market worldwide today. However, the well-known artificial banana flavor still comes from the former Gros Michel and therefore differs from the taste of today’s Cavendish banana. Ironically, the Cavendish is facing a similar threat today: tropical race 4 (TR4), a more aggressive variant of the same fungus, is spreading and endangering the world’s banana stocks. As many plantations are operated in monocultures, such diseases spread quickly and can cause crop failures. Crop breaks, mixed crops and crop rotation can counteract the spread of the fungus.

Banana plantations: places of exploitation

There are serious violations of the rights of plantation workers on many banana plantations in numerous countries: Many farm workers are poorly paid and exposed to health risks from the use of pesticides. In 2010, the UN Special Rapporteur on modern forms of slavery described the conditions on Ecuador’s banana plantations as ‘comparable to slavery’.

Ecuador has been the world’s largest banana exporter since the 1950’s. Almost a third of the bananas traded on the world market come from here. The country has around 5,000 banana producers, from the smallest family businesses to large-scale producers. They usually sell the bananas to middlemen, who then sell them on to international companies such as Chiquita or Dole. These big players hardly have any plantations of their own and dictate the market conditions to the middlemen, which the middlemen then in turn impose on the banana producers. The victims are the small producers and agricultural workers who are exploited and can hardly defend themselves against human rights violations, child labor and wages below the minimum wage. The spraying of highly toxic pesticides is also a serious problem: according to Oxfam, large banana producers use an average of 40 spraying cycles per year. Highly toxic substances that have long been banned in the EU are sprayed from the air over large areas. This poses a health risk for agricultural workers, who often have to return to the plantations after just a few hours, and also for local residents, as the mandatory minimum distances from inhabited areas are often ignored.

The long journey of the banana

Bananas are harvested completely green so that consumers all over the world can buy ripe bananas at any time. The bananas arrive in refrigerated containers, where the ripening process is suppressed. They are transported on refrigerated ships to the destination country, where they are ripened in so-called ‘ripening chambers’ through targeted fumigation and temperature increases, which takes four to eight days. The bananas are then transported in trucks to the supermarkets, where they are sold in the desired yellow or slightly green color. Behind our ‘everyday’ banana in the supermarket is a highly complex process that requires a great deal of energy and resources. So if it is not grown regionally, the banana should be eaten with care and the origin and variety should be chosen consciously.

Against the loss of biodiversity

The large-scale cultivation of bananas in monocultures contributes significantly to the loss of biodiversity. According to the FAO, agriculture is responsible for 70% of global biodiversity loss, especially in countries of the Global South. Monocultures, such as banana cultivation in Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic, lead to soil erosion, water scarcity and environmental pollution. The intensive use of land destroys habitats and endangers numerous animal and plant species. The ‘Del Campo ogl Plato’ project have promoted biodiversity-friendly initiatives in Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic that are organising banana plantations in a more ecologically beneficial way. These include the creation of ‘biotope corridors’, the use of natural fibers from pineapple stubble and the use of microorganisms to improve soil quality. Particularly impressive is the innovative use of earthworm humus and drone technology to reduce water consumption and ensure long-term yields. These measures show how biodiversity preservation and agriculture can be combined.

Sources

Klett. TERRA History Geography Politics Online: Info sheet banana. Link.
Spektrum.de. Encyclopedia of Biology: Banana family. Link.
Oxfam Germany: Edeka bananas from the toxic fog. Link.
Public Eye: As long as the price is right. Chiquita’s business in Ecuador and the working conditions on the plantations. Link.
Südwind. Institute for Economy and Ecumenism: Logistics and human rights: Inequality in the banana business. Link.
Del Campo al Plato: Biotope corridors. Link.