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The terrifying truth about bananas

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Yes, we might eventually have no bananas.  Is it really true?  Why are bananas, as we know them, now under the threat of extinction?  Can the fate of the Cavendish banana be changed?

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Curious about Panama Disease? Take a look here and learn more about how serious this disease is and exactly what is threatened by it.  

Although this video was made in 2013, the Cavendish Banana is believed to be even more in peril.  Why?  Read this article from the Smithsonian Magazine and find out!  There May Be No Saving The World's Top Banana may also give you some idea about how serious this issue is.  Finally, read, " Bye, Bye, Bananas." from the Washington Post.

How could such an "appealing" fruit have such a sordid past?  Well, start here with:  Unpeeling the Controversial History of Bananas.  For more on the history behind the banana, see here!  

Want to read a whole book about bananas?  Listen to this interview on Fresh Air at NPR.  
Avatar for Meraj Anjum
dghfgh
12/21/2015 • 
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Avatar for Teodoro Viteri
Teodoro Viteri • Portoviejo, Ecuador • LESSON IN PROGRESS
12/26/2015 • 
 2 Responses
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Avatar for Sarah Oakes
if bANANAS die I WILLL TURN myself into a giant banana and grow into more bananas an d save the wonderful world of tasty fruits -from the banana fiend aka jorin age 11
01/14/2016 • 
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Avatar for Delhi Holidayz
Delhi Holidayz • gurgaon, India • LESSON IN PROGRESS
Delhi, the capital state of India, although being a remarkable tourist destination, is sadly one of the busiest cities in the country http://resorts.neardelhi.in/hill-stations-near-delhi.html
01/24/2016 • 
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Avatar for Thiago Lopes
In Brazil, the banana market uses about ten varieties, only three of them are part of the Cavendish subgroup. Most of them are moderately susceptible to the Panama's disease, but we have a subgroup called Terra that is resistant to this disease, and we plant two varieties of this subgroup. The stated at the video difference in taste from Cavendish to Gros Michel is a testament to what you guys are missing out.
05/22/2016 • 
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Avatar for Lee Plusming
04/10/2021 • 
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Avatar for Hanna Sherenova
I've never heard about banana disease such as a Panama one. So the article definitely expanded the boundaries of my knowledge and gave me food for thought.
04/13/2021 • 
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Avatar for BRYAM PAUL BACUILIMA DURAN
05/24/2021 • 
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Avatar for BRYAM PAUL BACUILIMA DURAN
05/24/2021 • 
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Avatar for Danika Hunt
The Bananas we eat are not the bananas that grow wild in South America and so forth; they are genetically modified variants that do not have seeds. In the 60s, a breed of banana was killed due to the Panama disease. Today, there is a genetically modified version that was made to resist the Panama disease, but over time the disease was able to find a way to attack this variant of banana, and because all the bananas are the same since they come from the same plant, the disease was able to kill lots after it figured out how to kill one. But, people got rid of the affected plants and replaced them. Today, scientists are making variants of bananas that are resistant to the Panama disease, so if the type we eat today goes extinct then we will sti
11/07/2022 • 
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