A man sells bananas near a quarantined bananaplantation affected by a destructive fungus near Riohacha, Colombia, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2019. LA GUAJIRA, Colombia -- It might not be obvious at the supermarket, but the banana industry is fighting to protect the most popular variety of the fruit from a destructive fungus.
Banana industry watchers say it's more proof the Cavendish's days are numbered, but that there's still plenty of time to find alternatives. Bananas are also hard to breed, and finding varieties suited to global commerce isn't easy. In addition to being productive, Cavendish plants yield bananas that can survive the trip from warm climates to far-flung supermarkets, without ripening too quickly.
The fungus travels on small particles of soil that can stick to truck tires, farm equipment or workers' shoes. And in Colombia, farmers fear that thieves who sneak into plantations to steal bananas could accidentally spread the disease. Some farms in Colombia are only lightly guarded and are separated from interstate roads by small fences. The situation has prompted police and Colombia's military to step up presence around banana plantations since the disease was detected.
In La Guajira, officials have uprooted plants where the fungus has been detected and covered the soil with black plastic sheets that raise the temperatures to levels that could stop the disease from spreading. Healthy plants within a 60 foot radius of the affected areas are also killed with chemicals as a preventive measure.
Another challenge is that the fungus is lethal to a wide array of bananas. That's also a problem for places where starchier, cooked bananas are a food staple, including some countries in Africa and Latin America.