Today’s Solutions: November 09, 2024

The humble banana is a key staple in most fruit bowls and everyone’s go-to cure for cramps, but the Cavendish banana variety we find in most stores today was not always the world’s top variety. 

In the 1950s, Gros Michell was the banana variety of choice for production across the entire production industry. However, this meant that when Panama disease ravaged the crop, almost the entire global banana crop was affected. Researchers turned to the Cavendish variety, which was resistant to the disease, to solve the crisis, thus leading to the birth of the new banana.

Unfortunately, this did not solve the issue of monoculture, where a lack of diversity in crops makes the entire industry highly susceptible to bouts of disease. Sure enough, this year, Colombia, a large banana producer, declared a state of emergency as Tropical Race 4 (TR4) ravaged Cavendish crops.

So, how can we prevent a global banana crisis? The tech industry may just have the solution. Similarly to the banana, early tech inventions were generally uniform in software. This meant that, much like a banana, a single virus could threaten the entire system. Tech designers solved this by introducing artificial variety into products. Essentially they mixed around the guts of devices and systems. 

Drawing from the tech industry, we see that diversity is key. Developing a variety of commercial banana strains with different disease immunities could be critical for preventing large scale wipeouts of global crops. This could take many years, but if you see the fruit that looks a little different on a future trip to the grocery store, don’t go bananas, it’s a good thing.

Solutions News Source Print this article
More of Today's Solutions

Get back to basics with these 5 gut health fundamentals

The gut plays a central role in our bodily functions. It goes far beyond digestion to impact our immunity, mood, and long-term health. We’ve ...

Read More

Netherlands launches free sun protection campaign to promote sun safety

The Netherlands is taking proactive steps to combat the worrisome rise in skin cancer incidences by offering free sun protection to its inhabitants. Recognizing ...

Read More

Meet Liesel, the first gorilla to receive novel stem cell therapy for arthritis 

Liesel, the elderly gorilla matriarch at the Budapest Zoo, benefited from a groundbreaking method in animal healthcare. A stem-cell therapy directed by Professor Mark Wilkinson ...

Read More

UK announces groundbreaking ‘Flee Funds’ scheme for domestic abus...

The UK Home Office is taking a significant step forward in the fight against domestic abuse by launching a £2 million (just over $2.5 ...

Read More