Types, Varieties, & Cuts
Bananas may be classified as eating or cooking bananas with many different varieties. The most common variety of banana in the United States is the Cavendish with its long bunches of large, yellow fruit. Plantain bananas are typically used for cooking, the peel changes from green to yellow to yellow- brown to black as it ripens. Plantains are starchy and considered inedible when green but very sweet when fully ripened (black).
Sources: Produce Marketing Association, Purdue University
Cultivation, Storage & Packaging
Pre-harvest
Banana plants require deep, well-drained, acidic soil. Lime should be applied the second year if pH levels drop below 5.0 units. Low pH makes bananas more susceptible to disease, especially Panama disease (discussed below). Bananas are best planted at the end of the dry season and beginning of the wet season to provide adequate initial moisture and to avoid waterlogging young plants.
Postharvest
Plastic sleeves protect bunches against injury during transport from the field to packing stations. Unfortunately, the plastic can create condensation which combines with the sap and latex to stain the peel. At packing stations, the fruit is floated through water tanks to wash off sap. A controlled atmosphere delays ripening and reduces respiration and ethylene production rates. Harvested bananas allowed to ripen naturally at room temperature do not become as sweet and flavorful as those ripened artificially. Postharvest life potential of mature green bananas is two to four weeks in air (58ºF/14ºC) and four to six weeks in a controlled atmosphere (2 to 5% O2 and 2 to 5% CO2) at 58ºF (14ºC).
Sources: Purdue University, UC Davis Postharvest website
Health & Nutrition
Bananas are fat, sodium, and cholesterol free and a good source of fiber, Vitamin C, potassium, and Vitamin B-6.
Sources: Produce Marketing Association, ProduceOasis.com
