ImmortalChild
113490
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https://www.fastcompany.com/90399214/scientists-are-racing-to-reengineer-the-banana-before-its-gone-forever
Apr 1, 2020 10:17 PM
ImmortalChild
113490
2347
43
https://www.fastcompany.com/90399214/scientists-are-racing-to-reengineer-the-banana-before-its-gone-forever
nicohoya
RyanHaynes
AGAIN!?
indified
damn, china is taking out bananas now?
EroticZombiePants
We already lost one type of banana to disease.
3P3references
I've been reading this same story over and over for the last 10 years.
Camelspotting
It doesn't happen that quickly.
AnalCrusader7
Good, there are so many better tasting bananas
attofreak
This post should fit ALL the bananas
snooch2thegouch
Rawrihazshotgun
Bananavirus
RetroBlast
So, they're trying to GM a GMO?
Maldraek
Maybe we should start growing the OTHER bananas.
evilspyre
Other places do grow them, just not on a large scale. Whats needed is more genetic diversity so that a resistant strain can be made.
Maldraek
Or just so that no particular disease can wipe out ALL our bananas.
every28days
the cavendish banana.... people say there are better bananas than that in the world...excited to try them.
BionicBeach
Corona fungus is attacking the bananas!
DigitalBang
please, stop posting myths. https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/why-dont-banana-candies-taste-like-real-bananas/
FailedCrate
Monocultures, that's what we have done. Idiot humans.
bunnyandbear
Humans are also basically a monoculture., Pandemic!
Vercci
Laughs in Johnny Five Dicks.
JaydaCartel
Know those candy that taste like "fake" 'nanas? They're actually using a now extinct variety to base their flavor off of. Nifty fact of day.
xcalionus1
EVILMEMNOCH
I hate bananas. They make me vomit.
PaulMagzire
Don't like them either, but I do forced them down fast. Apparently they are good for you
owlest
dont deep throat so far then
EVILMEMNOCH
Omg.. hahahahahahahahaha. So original.
MightyAppMagnet
Because some (most) of you don’t eat seasonal fruits n veggies. When want > nature
JustCarved
this happened already. The main exported banana was the Gros Michel until this exact thing happened due to monoculture. We now eat Cavendish
711isAnInsideJob
You can buy Gros Michael plants online
BlindGardener
They didn't go extinct, just became commercially unviable.
binaryabyss5
*Desperate banana noises*
justsayingthatimpassingbytosay
Yo the banana button is gone!!!!
Link01
Seems pretty pointless so far since everyone is rating everything over 9,000
HessianGhost
Yes, we have no banana button.
We have no banana button today. https://youtu.be/wtiCO_7__5Q
weidermeijer
That is why banana flavored stuff doesn’t taste like bananas... because it happened before. Banana candy, etc. tastes like Gros Michel.
DigitalBang
no, banana flavor never tasted like real bananas. https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/why-dont-banana-candies-taste-like-real-bananas/
PoorSucker
There are 70 variety of banana in Thailand alone, not a single of the tasteless Cavendish you import.
PacManDreaming
I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks they're tasteless. I prefer those little red bananas. I find them here, every once in a while.
narderthanthou
All right then, Mr. High and Mighty Banana Pants.
koakuma42
I like apple bananas
CasualBoulder
May be tasteless but besides peanut butter bananas are the main thing my friend with a eating disorder can eat. Would suck if they went away
Kbantar
I wish to one day have enough money to go on world tour just to eat food where it's grown and best.
Mickp81
It’s not the flavor, it’s how well they ship, and how durable they are. That’s why cavendish is the major variety.
BlindGardener
Gross Michelles are better.
Mickp81
That’s what I’ve heard. Unfortunately they got taken out by a similar fungus.
Morg729
Well then they should stop hoarding them
zentradipriminister
I'm eager to try new things
Insomnia297
Bend over
zentradipriminister
Hi Mr. Dover. I'm the @zentradipriminister
thehumanoidsarecoming
they don't ship well. It's the same with anything, but more its selected for shipping the less flavorful it is. (and possibly hard on us)
zentradipriminister
howToLoseTheGame
That's what she said
zentradipriminister
In a wet dream
TheWarHymn
There are several dozen varieties of bananas grown in the world. Unfortunately, only the Cavendish variety are durable enough to ship to us.
HoosierScientist
Used to get Lady Fingers all the time but I havent seen them in a few years.
InfOracle
Peru has a pink banana that's amazing.
jesuisgur
Yes!
zentradipriminister
So far...
TheWarHymn
You figure they come up with a few more shippable varieties in 50 years...
beforetherewerememes
Red bananas are delicious.
horsedickdotjpg
A red banana msans..... Where the fuck did you get that banana at?
beforetherewerememes
If I’m not missing a reference - Was saying there are other species, but the fungus gets red too. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_banana
Stevangelist
Mitch Hedberg
hajimedj
That's what you get from monoculture
DarkSock
ur upper lip is monoculture
ThermoNuke
This is so dumb, have an upvote
Pokedmeinthecoconut
DasDovian
I had a hardcore vegan boss who loved to tell everyone about only eating ngmo food. I broke her when I taught her there's no such thing1/2
DasDovian
as real ngmo food. All the food we eat now has been modified from it's original state.2/2
twinjet
I am a fruit scientist. The banana is doomed. We are currently dealing with this same issue in tomatoes. We are almost ready for the (1/x)
owlest
noooo
Myfirstgirlfriendturnedintothemoon
For some reason calling yourself a fruit scientist doesn't make you sound credible...
twinjet
Yeah, it's a bum wrap but it's my life. I got my degrees in Fruit Science, Crop Science, Soil Science, and Sustainable Agriculture.
twinjet
4th tomato and the 5th disease is here. The agriculture issues we are facing are the same with this C-19 pandemic. Lot's of people (2/x)
twinjet
who think they know better are ruining it for the rest of us. Phytosanitary practices aren't being strictly implemented. Much like (3/x)
twinjet
Florida spring breakers right now. They are doing more harm by being selfish. Some farmers have the same mentality and it (4/x)
twinjet
hurting everyone, directly or otherwise. Just as it makes college students look bad, the same goes for farmers. (!/x)
WhiskyJet
Would really be interested to see how the anti-GMO crowd would weight in on this?
CatsUpvoteTerror
GMO promotes monocultures . Which is the issue here
Camelspotting
Does it?
Subtilico
They would go bananas.
sailordude81
Mccorny
PardusXY
You know you're doing well when your votes are better than the person you're replying to.
q2grapple
B-A-N-A-N-A-S
PardusXY
I am of the "transparency crowd", label that shit, let people choose.
CatsUpvoteTerror
Labeling things that aren't dangerous gives the false impression that it is.
PardusXY
http://healthstarrating.gov.au/internet/healthstarrating/publishing.nsf/content/home This is mandatory on all food in Australia.
de1h
So every produce item is labelled then, because farming intrinsically involves selective breeding which is genetic modification
Camelspotting
Not really though.
PardusXY
Ahh good point, but we also have labels for country of origin (Gov mandated)
IdGiveMyEyeTeeth4That
lIkely argue this is entirely from genetic meddling. There used to be a massive variety in the banana crop. safety in genetic diversity.
minipancho94
there is, just many are seeded, not suitable to ship, or niche for other means. vietnam has 70 different species for local consumption.
vopezy
If I recall correctly, we are eatting the second banana
Cats4Tacos
Meh, not a big fan of the sequel.
ensensu
Irish Potato Famine says this is time number 3.
plasmablue
2nt and 3rd banana now, a lot of places switched a while ago to a version. With more fruit per tree.
obviouscoconut
First banana had big ass seeds
msftensoc365
I'm pretty sure I've had more than 2 bananas
VulcanWithoutLogic
Nature keeps trying to kill bananas.
funyoungman
Almost like monoclonal agriculture isn't sustainable? Gosh who could've guessed.
funyoungman
I thought it was like the 4th?
jansenart
@OP Can't wait for the Blue Java to take over!
realscrumpysteve
The cavendish. The one before was the big mike, which is the one most candy flavor is based on.
Morg729
No second banana for me
baals
You know the taste of laffy taffy banana? That was the first one
AnimalGenetaliaAudioClues
Iirc. The reason banana candy taste that way is because that’s what bananas used to taste like.
CatsUpvoteTerror
Also I believe it had a slippery peel. That's where that bit cane from
DigitalBang
no, https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/why-dont-banana-candies-taste-like-real-bananas/
somethingdark
Well I don't miss the original banana at all then
HillCountryRambler
That's okay. No one is perfect.
funyoungman
I prefer it
vopezy
As in this already happened once.
Flodos
If the can gene-edit this one, I hope they can bring back the Gros Michel!
thisnameisntfunny
This has all happened before. This will all happen again.
whitebbwolf
yes. The Groß Michel Banana.
Ravenwing14
What was, will be.
butthurtnevergetsbetter
If we continue to "solve" this by covering the world in one cloned banana plant, it will keep happening.
Ihatedecidingonausername
You should warn someone!
ajizzle
agreed cloning will go on as people don't want bananas with seeds in them, but having different strains would help with disease resistance
YourDepression
Try to break up monsanto and we will be good
Sageypie
The problem is that this is the way to make them edible for us. Google wild bananas, they've got fucking huge seeds spread throughout.
Jamesbaxster
“Nature hates monocultures” -Joel Salatin. I’m starting to think humans may be a targeted monoculture.
DetectiveGaff
Imagine a world where we had generically diverse fruit
JimFromMarketing
Bananas aren't naturally like they are, they ARE clones. https://youtu.be/9fzTUQuyswU
override367
but that's a problem for someone worrying about whatever quarter that is profits
r0b0tc0rpse
Except that is how virtually all crops are. People don't want variation batch to batch... and there are commercial concerns like shelf life.
butthurtnevergetsbetter
How about apples?
ajizzle
and seeds too, nobody wants them but they are essential if you aren't going to use clones
BannedbyastupidMod
ok but, that sounds like a next year problem.
ilikedogsdogsarecool
I wish I could favorite a comment
TheSomethingSomethingGenericReplyGuy
Ha! Jokes on you, we might not li... Oh, I'm sad. Seriously, we must listen to scientist from now on.
feeltheice
The ones that designed the edible banana we all enjoy?
jrhawk42
yep, this is why artificial banana flavor tastes nothing like a banana (because it's based on the extinct one).
whitebbwolf
https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/why-dont-banana-candies-taste-like-real-bananas/
BannedbyastupidMod
it's not extinct
sailordude81
I've always heard this, but who knows what is truth when it comes to imagined extinct flavors.
sailordude81
To be fair, real watermelon tastes little like artificial watermelon, but no one is claiming OG flavor extinction there...
purgethefilthyheretics
Hwat
JustCarved
It's not extinct, you can still get them but theres only a couple of plantations now and they're more for boutique uses
CannabalisticSpaceRapArtist
Interesting.. first I have heard of that.
subparsubpoena
tangybreath
Nope. Its true as fuck
ClassyDestroyer
They're called "Gros Michel"
yourbassist
A very quick Google search will prove it's true.
gunslinger001
A very quick Baidu search will prove this is false
DarkSock
This is true actually. Google it.
AlienNippleAntennae
Yep that fake banana flavor in popsicles etc I actually the flavor of the 1st banana we enjoyed as hairless apes! Knowledge is power!
AlienNippleAntennae
*is
TrilithonStone
It was a fake version of the first banana even when the first banana was still around... it always tasted bad compared to a real banana...
DigitalBang
I am sorry, no. https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/why-dont-banana-candies-taste-like-real-bananas/
CatsUpvoteTerror
Well there are wild bananas. I think we started with those
Mistamuthafuka
You are correct... But it is worth mentioning there are natural banana species out there that we don't even bother with.
Neoeon
Amazing how we learn from history. We wont "Lose it forever" though. That's what seed vaults are for.
MokiYoki
So the thing is that you can't get a seed of the bananas we eat. They are all cloned using cuttings, meaning there has to be a living plant
CatsUpvoteTerror
Cavendish is grown from graftd
minipancho94
thats the reason this goes extinct actually. we can breed it again, but we eat seedless clones spread by cuttings. seeded bananas are safe.
TheWarHymn
Orher banana varieties exist that are resistant, just that they aren't as suitable as the Cavendish for oversea shipping.
Neoeon
Right. But, as I say, just because the crop is dead doesnt mean we cant plant more.
A5tor
No. We can't
SomeNameGoesHere
Unless you mean different varieties. Then no. Cultivated bananas are clonal. Not from seed as they're not true to type.
Neoeon
Surely they have a stock of some sort to regrow from somehow?
ebap
Correct we are currently on the cavendish bananner. Fun fact, banana candy was and is based off the taste of the first banana which is why
gottakeepgoing
Well, I never had the original, but I hear it was better.
BOOMstick666
We had some growing in our backyard that tasted EXACTLY like the candy. Froze what we could, only happened one season. Brisbane QLD
DigitalBang
Its actually based off a pear, but when marketed in the USA not many people had tasted a pear, it was just a non descript fruit taste.
dudeinsha
When did America go on a War on Pears?
Punk1209
Gros Michel banana, I believe. I've heard this and read it several times, then read that it's not true. I don't know either way. lol
Nalianna
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gros_Michel_banana
Nalianna
and later, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cavendish_banana
ebap
It tastes slightly off
RoastedSalted
You can confirm this by getting dried banana chips, most of which come from the Philippines. They taste like banana candy.
NapoleonDynOmite
*slightly gross
DrankTooMuchMead
And the fact that it is an artificial compound created in a chem lab has nothing to do with it?
ChemicalG
Its an artificial compound thats identical to the compound that gave the banana the taste it had
CmpltBlsht
Or, more accurately, why it tastes so much better.
alpacasaurusrex
*worse. Banana candy is horrible. I give mine away.
trigirl48
you spelt amazing wrong
BornOnAMonday83
What are you talking about. It tastes and smells like fucking gun oil. Actual gun oil. Not the sex jelly gun oil.
Yenaldooshi
Well time to go buy some gun oil
ixelyth
Why are you tasting gun oil