How Holland was able to plant its first banana harvest without using land

The Netherlands managed to produce its first banana crop. But unlike those harvested in Brazil, the Caribbean and other countries where fruit is abundant in the soil, Dutch banana has been made in a laboratory far from the land.

The idea was that of the scientist Gert Kema, who was trying to fight against one of the biggest enemies of banana plantations: the "Panama disease" caused by a fungus transmitted by the soil. The disease is "a threat to global production" of fruit, "Kema told BBC World Mundo of the BBC World Service.

Professor of Tropical Plant Pathology at the University of Wageningen in the Netherlands, Kema said that "The solution" to the problem was to "remove the banana from the soil". " (19659002) He thus avoided the presence of the fungus that caused the presence of the fungus in the soil, "It is not hydroponic bananas because the roots are not in a water-based solution", did he declare.

"We add nutrients by drip irrigation." Grow bananas in an artificial environment. allows you to control every aspect of the process and prevents nutrient loss, according to Kema.

"This is an example of precision farming that helps better separate more luminous and mature plants more quickly."

Threat

Bananas are an essential food for the diet of about 400 million people worldwide, according to Wageningen University.

And so far, the spread of banana disease in Panama, which mainly affects countries in Asia and Africa, has not been mastered .

The disease, which bears the name of Panama because it was detected there for the first time, wiped out the most exported banana of the 1950s, the Gros Michel variety.

The disease of Panama is caused by the fungus Fusarium oxysporum . It is a pathogen very difficult to fight because it is born on the ground and spreads very easily by water and soil particles, especially in contact with shoes, clothes and tools.

The disease can not be controlled with fungicides. After the disappearance of the Gros Michel banana, the producers concentrated on another species called Cavendish, smaller and less tasty, but more resistant and more likely to be exported because it was not susceptible to contamination.

However, Cavendish bananas are not resistant to fungal variations called TR4 or tropical race 4.

Trials in the Philippines

Could Kema's method be reproduced in more detail

"Potentially, yes, planting on substrates is already used in horticulture, for example for tomatoes and cucumbers," Kema said.

"I think that this method has a lot of potential and will prevent losses due to diseases and pests.It could contribute to the fight against Panama disease against other diseases transmitted by the disease. soil that threaten global production. "

production and distribution of bananas, expressed interest in Kema's work.

"We did a test in the Philippines with Chiquita," Kema told BBC World.

"We hope to do other tests, even if we have not defined where." And we would be very interested to try this technique in all parts of the world affected by the TR4 mushroom. "

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