The world warns of the imminent disappearance of bananas

The German daily Die Welt writes that humanity could be without bananas. A highly infectious soil fungus has attacked palm trees. It used to be common in Asia and Australia and has now reached South America, where the world’s most widely grown banana variety, Cavendish, accounts for 95% of world trade. The first plantations in Honduras and Colombia have already been closed.

The disease, called Tropical Race 4 (TR4), is dangerous because it can resist the effects of chemicals. If the soil is contaminated, bananas cannot be grown on it for 30-40 years.

In poor countries, the disappearance of this valuable product can lead to famine, experts warn. But there’s good news, too. A genetically modified version of the Cavendish variety has been bred that is immune to TR4. Now researchers want to develop a variety that is resistant to the disease but not genetically modified. There are even major investors willing to invest in the research. True, it may take years to develop a new banana variety.