PHNOM PENH: International food scientists warn that a decades-long, unresolved fungal disease threatening banana plants is endangering crops in South-East Asia and worldwide, risking livelihoods and food security.
Farmers in major banana-producing countries - ranging from Indonesia and Africa to South America - remain fearful of the deadly Fusarium Wilt, commonly known as Tropical Race 4 (TR4).
Growers are already contending with harsh weather conditions that affect production, as well as high costs and shortages of fuel and fertilisers due to the West Asian conflict.
The added threat of TR4 further jeopardises their incomes.
"Fusarium Wilt TR4 remains a major concern both in South-East Asia and globally, as it is a highly destructive soil-borne pathogen that persists in the soil for decades and has no effective control once established,” United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (FAO) World Banana Forum Secretariat Secretary Victor Prada said.
"When present, it causes severe yield losses, can make land unsuitable for banana production over the long term and significantly increases production costs due to the need for strict prevention, biosecurity and containment measures, making it a persistent and unresolved threat for banana producers worldwide.”
Food scientists across the world have been experimenting for years to eradicate the TR4 menace, but have been unable to stop the pathogen from spreading. It normally attacks the roots of the banana.
Banana varieties - including the Cavendish, popular among farmers, global consumers and a highly exported variant - remain vulnerable to the fungus.
For instance, the Fusarium Wilt, also dubbed the Panama disease, wiped out over 15,000 hectares of Cavendish plantations in Mindanao in the Philippines in 2015.
In the region, Indonesia and the Philippines remain major banana producers, a fruit that provides nutrition and a lifeline for millions of rural growers.
Indonesia is the world’s third-largest banana producer with about nine million metric tonnes annually. India is the world’s top producer with about 38 million metric tonnes, followed by China with 12 million metric tonnes.
But the curse of TR4 continues to cast a gloom over millions of farmers in South-East Asia; it is not only about risks to rural jobs, but it could ruin economies.
"TR4 remains a major challenge for our farmers without a solution because once they are in the soil, it is hard to remove them or control them from spreading.
"If the banana plantations are infected, we have to abandon or burn the entire area. We are doing inter-cropping to stop the spread of TR4 by planting coffee and cocoa,” Green Makmur Farmers Cooperative Chairman Sigit Wicaksono (Koperasi Produsen Tani Hijau Makmur) told Bernama from Lampung, Indonesia.
Lampung Province is a major banana producer in the Indonesian archipelago.
FAO’s Prada cautions: "The spread of TR4 across different regions poses a significant threat to food security and livelihoods, as bananas are a staple food and a key source of income for millions of people, and the disease can cause severe yield losses and long-term land unproductivity.”
Total global banana exports reached 25 million metric tonnes last year, worth roughly US$17 billion.
However, researchers are not hanging up their gloves yet. Chinese scientists developed the disease-resistant crop, the Zhongre No. 1 variant, which is reported to be a key breakthrough.
"Promising varieties such as Zhongre No. 1 are an important step forward, but they are not a complete solution, as they are not immune and can still become infected and spread the pathogen,” Matheus Lima, Agricultural Engineer and Sustainability Specialist at World Banana Forum Secretariat, said.
Smallholders continue to face challenges from limited resources, awareness and access to technical expertise to identify the disease on time, he said.
"Effective prevention and management of TR4, therefore, requires a collective and sustained effort across governments, industry and farmers, with stronger coordination along the value chain, and continuous and practical capacity building at all levels,” said Matheus. - Bernama
