ABSTRACT
Decay of banana frequently develops on ripening fruits either at points of sale in grocery stores or later after purchase. Incidence of diseases is closely related to poor cultural and management practices in the field, to unclean packinghouses and adjacent surroundings, and to improper postharvest handling and transport. Postharvest diseases can be a serious problem for both growers and traders who fail to manage them effectively. While infected fruits are safe for humans to consume, the diseases reduce fruit quality, shelf life, and marketability. Decay is controlled commercially by submerging fruit in fungicide solutions. Prolonged use of fungicides can lead to a build-up of resistance in pathogen populations, and their use causes concerns about adverse effects on human health and environment, especially if used chemicals are discharged into waterways. Hence, research efforts are increasing to find nonchemical alternatives (NCAs) to the use of synthetic fungicides for postharvest disease control. This chapter describes the symptoms, causal pathogens, and the conditions favoring postharvest diseases of banana and plantain. NCAs as single treatments or their combinations to reduce rotting are discussed. Cultural, environmental, and general production methods to maintain fruit quality are likewise reviewed. NCAs in commercial settings are currently not efficient enough to match the efficacy of fungicide treatments, but the results of some semi-commercial trials have shown that postharvest diseases can be effectively managed by combining different NCAs. Examples of these approaches are combining microbial control agents with inorganic salts and/or hot water treatment.
