Safeguarding the Future of US Agriculture - Global Crop Diversity Trust

YES, We Have Bananas, and Plaintains Toobox 2DESPITE ITS great popularity,the banana teeters on theedge of disaster. Maintainingand making use of geneticdiversity in the bananaplant family will be key toits survival.Most people in the US knowthe banana commonlyavailable in grocery stores,but what they do not knowis that these bananas aremostly imported from LatinAmerica, are a singlevariety–Cavendish, and aresusceptible to severaldiseases, especially blacksigatoka to which Cavendishis susceptible, requiringabout 50 applications offungicide each year toharvest a healthy crop. Incontrast, approximately 500different types of bananasare grown locally in thetropics. Some are sweettasting,dessert-types thatcan be eaten fresh. Others,like plantains, are starchierand need to be cookedbefore consumption.Bananas and plantains arestaple foods in many partsof the developing world,where genetic diversityabounds, but yields are lowand varietal improvementfor increased production isessential. Since theintroduction of new varietiesmay eliminate nativediversity, collection of nativetypes must be conserved ingenebanks in all of thebanana and plantaingrowingcountries. This isthe key to long-termsustainability of these foodcrops. Cultivated bananasand plantains, being sterileand producing no seeds,are generally maintained asliving plants growing in thefield or in small bottles astissue culture.Plantation-grown bananas forUS consumption are usuallysprayed with fungicide byairplanes, putting localpeople at risk from spraydrift. Breeding diseaseresistant varietiescomparable to the Cavendishshould be a high priority forthe banana industry. Besidesblack sigatoka, the rootattackingdisease, fusariumwilt is re-emerging as aproduction threat. Fusariuminfects the plant’s roots,causing the trees to wiltand die. In the 1940s and1950s, a related strain ofFusarium nearly wiped outthe then-reigning king ofexports, a banana varietycalled Gros Michel. If thenew fungal strain spreadsfrom Asia, the Cavendishbanana may suffer thesame fate as itspredecessor.Banana poses seriousproblems for plant breedersbecause of the difficulty ofidentifying stable, butsterile, plants forcommercialization.Biotechnology offers goodsolutions to transfer genetictraits more efficiently fromone banana type to another.Ultimately, success willdepend on the depth of thebanana gene pool. Geneticdiversity, or lack thereof,could determine thecontinued viability ofbananas both as a majorexport crop and as a criticalsource of nutritious food inthe developing world.Items like these papaya’s,rarely seen on a groceryshelf 20 years ago, arenow widely available asconsumers diversify theirfood choices and demandhealthier products. Cropdiversity can provide theneccessary resources tomeet the demand forhealthier, high qualityproducts.© USDA-ARS, Scott Bauerwhen there is no US production have been welcomed by consumers, who arewilling to pay a higher price. This offers greater diversity in diets—a healthfulconsequence— and also provides another example of how conserving the geneticdiversity of crops in foreign lands would benefit US consumers.The ERS anticipates that rising incomes will continue to allow Americans toupgrade and diversify their food choices. Economists project that food expenditureswill be 26 percent higher in 2020 compared to 2000, based on higher incomescombined with a larger population, with much of that growth attributed toimmigration. The US population is expected to grow by 18-28 percent, or 50-80million people, by 2020. This expenditure increase will have greater implicationsfor issues of quality than quantity, with items such as exotic fruits, mini vegetables,tofu-grade soybeans and vine-ripened tomatoes on consumers’ shopping lists.The trend toward healthier eating is also being fueled by nationwide worries aboutobesity. With approximately nine million children over the age of six now obese,parents are looking for alternatives to fast foods and soda pops. So pronounced isthis trend that the fast food industry is even offering options: last October, forexample, McDonald’s introduced a new McVeggie Burger, a meatless, soy-basedpatty, and Wendy’s advertises a dish of miniature orange slices, in place of Frenchfries.22 CROP DIVERSITY, DIET AND CHOICE