Banana

Banana, a member of the Musaceae family, belongs to the genus Musa, which comprises a significant variety of species and hybrids. Though there are over thousand varieties of bananas grown and consumed worldwide, the Cavendish type banana crowned the most commercialized variety tag, accounting for about 47% of global production. In 2018, global banana exports (excluding plantains) are forecast to touch a new high of 19.2 million tons due to ample growth in its supply. Bananas and plantains are the only 2known items under fruits that also constitute a staple food for millions. It is a recommended dietary supplement to lower blood pressure as it contains low salt and high potassium chloride. Bananas are a well-accepted food item in antique medicine in China, India, and ancient Persia due to its effectiveness against obesity, peptic ulcer, infant diarrhea, celiac disease, and colitis. Banana commercially propagated through suckers and more recently for uniform yield and less disease infection plantlets developed through tissue culture are recommended. Seeds are used only in breeding program. Advanced cultivation practices such as sucker management, drip irrigation scheduling, adoption of fertigation, and bunch management lead to achieving higher productivity. Researchers over the world engage in developing new cultivars through several breeding programs like hybridization, selection, mutation to escape the devastating disease like sigatoka, BBTV, and fusarium wilt. In recent times, ripening improvement through standardized ethylene treatment and storing of banana in CA/MA storage makes it possible to store them for a longer duration and safe disposal in targeted market with minimum loss.