The Future of Global Banana Production

Banana and plantain (a type of cooking banana) are produced in 135 countries and territories, and rank among the world's most valuable primary agricultural commodities. Exported bananas, valued at over US$8.9 billion, are key contributors of foreign currency in several producing countries yet comprise less than 15% of the total annual output of 145 million tonnes (Mt). Much of the remaining harvest is produced for local markets. Exporters produce Cavendish cultivars in large plantations with fixed infrastructures and high inputs of fertilizers, irrigation, and pesticides. Multinational companies such as Dole, Chiquita, and Del Monte are now middlemen who purchase fruit from in-country producers and transport, ripen, and market the commodity in foreign destinations. In contrast, local producers grow diverse cultivars often with minimal inputs and little market organization. Abiotic factors that affect different banana producers are quite variable. Only some of these factors are understood in the local sectors. Fragmentary information exists for production inputs, postharvest handling, and marketing, and production and economic data are often not published. In contrast, abiotic factors that are associated with export production are usually well understood, and production and economic information is available. Diseases are the most significant biotic constraints for both export and local producers; most damaging are Fusarium wilt (especially tropical race 4), the Sigatoka leaf spots (in particular, black leaf streak), bacterial wilt diseases, and two virus-induced diseases, banana bunchy top and banana streak. Less important worldwide, but locally significant are other diseases and pests, including nematodes and the banana weevil. Although most of the diseases have limited geographic distributions, they continue to spread and, in aggregate, pose grave threats to sustainable banana production worldwide. The future of this important crop is discussed in light of the diverse problems that confront production.