The Future of Bananas

The most eaten fruit in theworld is facing possible extinction. While there are thousands of banana varieties,only one has become the West’s favourite – theCavendish: our familiar curvy, yellow-skinned,seedless fruit. But our obsession with the Cavendish has come at a cost. Years of selectionand humankinds’ migration across the worldhas left the Cavendish susceptible to diseaseand climate change. How can we save the future of the banana?Professor James Dale is leading the way. Based at Queensland University of Technologyin Australia, he and his team have developedthe world’s first genetically modified bananato be approved for commercial production. Based on the latest research and technological developments, from gene editing, cisgenics,AI design and biofortifiction, Dale shows howwe could save the banana, while bringing tolife its colourful history – the lucrative bananaindustry has resulted in political coups, drugtrafficking and even murder. Bananageddon can be prevented, Dale argues, if the world is ready to embrace a newfuture led by scientific change.

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