I'm Doug Johnson with the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.
In recent years, some concerns have been raised about the health of the
world’s banana plants. A number of media reports have said that bananas
may completely disappear. Some claimed that this could happen in as little
as ten years. Such fears are disputed, however.
Bananas are one of the world’s most important food
crops. They are also one of the most valuable exports. Bananas do not grow
from seeds. Instead, they grow from existing plants. Bananas are
threatened by disease because all the plants on a farm are copies of each
other. They all share the same genetic
weaknesses.
For example, the Cavendish banana is most popular
in North American and European markets. However, some kinds of fungus
organisms easily infect
the Cavendish. Black Sigatoka disease affects the leaves of Cavendish
banana plants. The disease is controlled on large farms by putting
chemicals on the plant’s leaves. Farmers put anti-fungal chemicals on
their crops up to once a week.
Another fungal disease is more serious. Panama disease attacks the
roots of the banana plant. There is no chemical treatment for this
disease. Infected plants must be destroyed. Panama disease has affected
crops in Southeast Asia, Australia and South Africa. There is concern that
it may spread to bananas grown in the Americas. This could threaten an
important export product for Central and South America.
The International Network for the Improvement of Banana and Plantain
supports research on bananas. The group has headquarters in France and
other offices in the major banana-growing areas of the world. The group
says that more research must be done to develop improved kinds of bananas.
The group says that fungal diseases mainly affect only one kind of
banana. In fact, there are five hundred different kinds of bananas. The
United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization has said that the
Cavendish banana represents only ten percent of world production.
The U.N. agency says farmers should grow different kinds of bananas.
This protects against diseases that affect only one kind. Experts warn
that disease may cause the Cavendish banana to disappear. This happened
earlier to another popular banana because of its genetic weakness against
disease.
This VOA Special English Agriculture Report was written by Mario
Ritter. Our reports are on the Web at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Doug
Johnson. |