Bananageddon

Challenging assumptions around food security

Is the world running out of bananas? Well, no. Not…yet — but nature is flashing a big, yellow, squishy "caution" sign. In this episode, Dr. Kaylee Byers peels away our assumptions about food security by looking at bananas. Venturing Down Under, we connect with Dr. James Dale from Queensland University of Technology – a bona fide banana expert, who tells us exactly why this iconic yellow fruit could one day become a rarity. But, with the help of a clever genomic idea, he and his intrepid team of Aussie researchers and farmers are looking at how to hit "abort" on complete Bananageddon.

Special thanks to Mark Smith with Darwin Fruit Farm Party Limited for providing field recordings for this episode.

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Highlights:

(01:48) Peeling into bananageddon

(10:33) The cavendish equation, a lucky banana swap 

(20:57) Safety net, saving the cavendish 

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Learn-A-Long: https://bit.ly/46THrTU

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References:

Why Don’t Banana Candies Taste Like Real Bananas? | Science Friday

What We Can Learn From the Near-Death of the Banana | TIME

Banana Wars: Power, Production, and History in the Americas | Duke University Press

Chinese coolies | National Library Board

The Story of the Cavendish Banana | Tenerife Weekly

Not your mother’s banana | Bananageddon

Fungal attacks threaten global food supply, say experts | The Guardian

The banana is dying. The race is on to reinvent it before it's too late | Wired

QUT-developed GM Cavendish offers safety net to world banana industry | Queensland University of Technology

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Credit:

Journey to Banana Land: By the United Fruit Company (1950) | Institute of Visual Training

Ag Report: Fighting rural farm crime; banana disease; and ag grant award | ABC News