Banana

History and origin

Today’s bananas come from the wild forms Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana, still present in Southeast Asia. These wild banana trees, rich in seeds and poor in pulp, grow in clearings and forest edges. The center of domestication dates back 6,500 years to Papua New Guinea. The plant then migrated to West Africa around 2,500 years ago. In the Americas, it arrived in 1516 in the Dominican Republic, via the Canary Islands, before spreading to Central and South America. Human migrations have thus enabled its adaptation on all continents.

Variety and cultivation

The banana tree, a giant herb of tropical regions, produces fruit in 9 to 12 months, with bunches that can weigh 50 kg. Cultivated for sweet bananas and plantains, global production is dominated by the Cavendish variety. The banana is the fourth largest agricultural product in the world.

Did you know?

If bananas are curved, it’s because they grow to make the most of the Sun. The flower first grows towards the ground, then to accelerate their development, the fruits turn in the opposite direction, towards the sky, to take advantage of the light.