Every year, people around the world consume over 100 billion bananas, most of which are a variety called Cavendish. But maybe not for long.
A fungal disease threatens to wipe Cavendish bananas off the face of the Earth.
Some scientists are genetically modifying the fruit to make it more disease resistant.
But the best solution to the problem is for farmers to completely overhaul banana production.
There are over 1,000 types of bananas, but about 47% that people eat are Cavendish bananas (Musa acuminata).
Cavendish dominates the global banana market for several reasons:
One, it is resistant to some of the main diseases that kill bananas; two, it has a long shelf life; and three, farmers can usually grow more Cavendish bananas than other varieties on the same amount of land.
But Cavendish is under threat from a fungus that infects the plant. The infection is called Panama Disease (Fusarium Wilt) tropical race 4.
TR4 infection begins in the roots of the banana tree and then spreads, eventually disabling the plant's ability to absorb water or carry out photosynthesis. Eventually, the tree dies as a result.
