The phrase "banana republic" is a derogatory term for a country whose economy is based on the export of a single product. It emerged in the late 19th century when a handful of American corporations exploited banana plantations in Central and South America. The lack of diversity and external control led to corruption, extreme income inequality, and social or political instability.

While homogeneity is dangerous for economics, it's also bad for crops. Now, for the second time in a century, the banana industry is being threatened by a soil-borne pathogen because of a lack of diversity.

The unappealing impacts of cloning

By volume, bananas are the largest fruit crop in the world and one of the top four global food sources. Most wild bananas have seeds that make the fruit challenging to eat. Researchers believe seedlessness arose as a natural mutation in Southeast Asia, where bananas originated, and that humans then domesticated and cultivated plants that produced seedless fruit.

Bananas are propagated asexually through plant cuttings to preserve the seedless trait. However, asexual propagation results in offspring that are genetically identical to the parent plant — the new plants are essentially clones. Over time, the crop's uniformity leaves it uniquely vulnerable to pests and pathogens. Without genetic variation, bananas can be wiped out by a single threat. It's already happened once.

Plan "B"

The Cavendish is the most common banana exported to markets in the North, but it wasn't the first choice. 

When banana production took off in the 1800s, a variety called Gros Michel was the commercial favorite. Gros Michel was sweeter and firmer than the Cavendish, but it was genetically uniform because it was also propagated by plant cuttings. In the 19th century, a soil-borne Fusarium fungus known as Tropical Race 1, or TR1, was discovered in Australia. TR1 causes Fusarium wilt (also known as Panama disease) which is deadly to Gros Michel bananas and some other varieties that are less popular commercially.

By the 1950s, TR1 had infected nearly every commercial banana plantation in the world. The industry shifted to TR1-resistant Cavendish varieties, and today, 99% of global banana exports are Cavendish. Since then, new Fusarium races have emerged, including TR2 and TR3, which don't impact the Cavendish, and TR4, which does. 

TR4 was first detected in Taiwan in 1967. It has since devastated plantations in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Quarantine efforts slowed its progress to the Americas until 2016, when it appeared in Colombia, followed by Peru and Venezuela. 

While it may seem like history is repeating itself, there is no suitable alternative waiting in the wings this time. Bananas grow in tropical climates, and varieties for export markets must be hardy enough to withstand the rigors of long transport timelines. Consumers have also grown used to a particular taste and texture profile. Traditional breeding efforts have so far failed to produce a commercially viable banana with resistance to TR4.

GMO developers are exploring biotechnology solutions to the banana problem, with several varieties in different stages of development. 

The (un)wild bunch

Australia

Researchers at the Queensland University of Technology in Australia developed a genetically modified banana called QCAV-4 by inserting a gene from a wild banana into the Cavendish. The QCAV-4 shows resistance to TR4, lowering the infection rate of Fusarium wilt by up to 93%. In the future, the team behind the QCAV-4 plans to use CRISPR gene editing to make the QCAV-4 resistant to a different fungal disease, Black Sigatoka. 

QCAV-4 is the first GMO banana in the world to receive regulatory approval. In 2024, authorities in Australia and New Zealand green-lit the genetically modified banana for domestic cultivation and consumption. However, biosecurity measures in Australia have so far effectively contained TR4 in the Northern Territory and, in the absence of severe infection, there are no plans to cultivate the QCAV-4 in Australia at this time. The QCAV-4 may appeal to growers in other countries.

Upon appearance in the commercial marketplace, QCAV-4 bananas and products made with them will have to be labeled as GMOs in Australia.

The Philippines

In 2022, the Philippines' Department of Agriculture published updated regulations for evaluating gene-edited plants. The first products evaluated under the new rules were two gene-edited bananas developed by UK-based Tropic Biosciences, who created the bananas using CRISPR-Cas 9 gene editing technology. As products of gene editing, these bananas meet internationally adopted criteria for living modified organisms, or GMOs. However, due to the updated evaluation process, the Philippines' Department of Agriculture issued a determination that the two gene-edited bananas are not GMOs. In previous New GMO Alerts, we've reported on the deregulation of products made through new genomic techniques. 

The Philippines is a top banana exporter in Southeast Asia and has faced severe infection from TR4. However, these two gene-edited bananas do not appear to offer disease resistance. They were engineered for reduced browning to combat food waste, which is severe in banana production — Tropic Biosciences estimates more than 60% of bananas go to waste before reaching the consumer. The company is working on a gene-edited banana that is resistant to Fusarium wilt.

Honduras

As of 2024, Honduras' National Committee on Biotechnology and Biosecurity (NCBB) has approved several GMO bananas, including four transgenic banana varieties developed by Dole/Elo Life Systems and engineered for TR4 resistance, at least one of which has been approved for commercial production. Additionally, three GMO bananas developed by Tropic Biosciences were approved in 2022, engineered for reduced browning and extended shelf life — one of these GMO bananas is approved for commercial production, and the other two are in the experimental stage. 

Costa Rica

Costa Rica is the fifth largest exporter of bananas to the US. While TR4 has not yet been detected there, the fungal disease Black Sigatoka has been reported and concerns over TR4 are high due to the country's proximity to outbreaks in the region.

In 2023, Costa Rica issued updated policies for regulating products made through new genomic techniques such as gene editing, treating such products as equivalent to conventional, or non-GMO, products. Researchers are expected to release a gene-edited banana engineered for resistance to Black Sigatoka and Fusarium wilt sometime in 2025. The USDA Foreign Agriculture Service has indicated at least one other GMO banana undergoing field trials in Costa Rica.

The Non-GMO Project’s Standard defines all crops and products developed using biotechnology, including new gene-editing techniques, as GMOs. We share this information to further one of the Project’s primary goals of creating greater transparency in the supply chain, ensuring you have the information you need to make the best choices for you, your brand, and your family. 

Please note that the information herein is for general informational purposes only and is based on the linked sources above.

The Non-GMO Project is a 510c3 nonprofit dedicated to protecting and promoting non-GMO alternatives. New GMO Alerts is supported by funding from readers like you. Donate today.