The banana has conquered land. It has conquered governments. But so far, it hasn’t been able to conquer its own biological limitations. And nowhere was this more apparent than—of all places—at the 2016 International Banana Congress.

Every few years, banana experts worldwide gather in one place to share information about their crop. This year, CORBANA, a Costa Rican association of banana experts, had arranged to host the meeting in San José, Costa Rica, the capital city of one of the most productive banana-growing countries on Earth. The location seemed to be the perfect place to assemble banana experts to discuss the crisis facing world banana crops, a fungal disease known as Fusarium wilt, or Panama Disease, which has been