This article is part of our Urban Expeditions series, an initiative made possible by a grant from United Technologies to the National Geographic Society.
Bananas don’t grow in every
country, but they are ubiquitous
nonetheless. As the world’s most
popular fruit, they account for
roughly 75 percent of the tropical
fruit trade and more than a
hundred billion are eaten annually.
Getting ripe bananas to market is a
surprisingly intricate process.
Facilities unique to the industry
control the ripening stage to ensure
bananas are the ideal green or
yellow when they reach stores,
depending on consumer preference. —Kelsey Nowakowski
THE BANANA PLANT
Grown in tropical and subtropical
areas around the world, bananas
are botanically classified as a
berry. The word banana stems
from the Arabic word “banan,”
meaning finger.
Is It a Tree?
The banana plant is the largest
herbaceous flowering plant.
(10 feet)
It takes nine months to grow a
complete bunch, up to 170 bananas.
COUNTRIES GROW
VARIETIES
Unlike seasonal fruits, bananas grow
year-round and are plentiful.
KING OF FRUITS
As the world’s most consumed
fruit, bananas are a dietary staple.
Bananas are the world’s most
exported fruit, but they’re popular
at home too: Eighty-five percent
are produced for domestic
consumption.
Annual Fruit Production
In millions of metric tons
114
Bananas
Watermelons
Apples
Grapes
Oranges
Coconuts
Mangoes
Plantains
Tangerines/
mandarins
Other melons
Though plantains belong to same genus as
bananas, the crops are counted separately.
WORLD BANANA CONSUMPTION
In millions of metric tons
86
IN INDIA, CHINA, BRAZIL,
AND INDONESIA
These countries consume
most of their production
so they are not among the
top exporters.
Consumption data refers to food supply,
the amount of bananas available.
FIVE PER DAY
Rwanda consumes
the most per capita,
279 kg (616 lbs) a
year, versus 12 kg
(26 lbs) in the U.S.
A Banana's
Journey
Advances in refrigerated
transportation helped bananas
become the world’s most traded
fruit. Many supermarkets price
them at or near cost—called a loss
leader—to get customers into
their stores.
A CASE STUDY FROM
ECUADOR...
of WORLD exports
TOP EXPORTER
...TO NEW YORK CITY,
UNITED STATES
of WORLD IMPORTS
TOP IMPORTER
Supply Chain Stages AND THEIR Value
plantation workers
Grown on large farms, banana bunches are
cut down while still green by workers using
machetes. The Cavendish variety is the
most widely cultivated type.
Value of a Dollar's
Worth of Bananas
plantation owner
Once harvested, the bananas are
transported to packing sheds, where they are
inspected, washed, and boxed for export.
international trade
To prevent them from ripening in transit,
pallets of bananas are shipped in refrigerated
containers.
Container ships pass through the Panama
Canal en route to Wilmington, Delaware,
which handles about a million tons of bananas
a year, the busiest “banana port” in the U.S.,
and second globally only to Antwerp,
Belgium.
ripening and distribution
When the bananas arrive in port, they clear
customs and are trucked to special facilities,
where a ripening process is closely
monitored (detail below).
Bananas are delivered to regional distribution
centers and wholesalers before being sent to
supermarkets and bodegas.
TO MARKET
Bodegas sell individual yellow bananas, ready
to eat, while larger stores prefer slightly green
"hands" that can last for days.
The Art
of Ripening
Ripeners are scientific specialists in
the banana supply chain. Their
facilities feature high-tech rooms
that control ventilation, humidity,
temperature, and ethylene gas, a
natural ripening chemical.
A typical 5-day schedule
Green bananas are tested for
temperature and color before being
placed in a consistently ventilated
room that's kept at 70 to 90 percent
relative humidity. Bananas ripen at
60 to 70 degrees.
To start the ripening process,
ethylene gas is pumped into the
room. A normal chemical by-product
of ripening fruits, the gas circulates
throughout the room overnight.
GAS
A BANANA'S NATURAL ETHYLENE
CAN RIPEN OTHER PRODUCE
AND EVEN SPOIL SOME SENSITIVE
TO THE GAS.
Ethylene gas is flushed out of the
room, which is then ventilated with
fresh air and kept at 60 to 62
degrees. The fruit is still green, but
now has been triggered to ripen.
TEMPERATURE SERVES AS AN
ALARM CLOCK, WAKING UP A
BANANA.
The fruit is still green but begins to
“break” and transition in color.A
specialist closely monitors the fruit,
waiting for a faint yellow hue to be
visible throughout.
The fruit is ready to ship to retailers.
Bananas ideally ship to stores
around stage three
(chart below). While in transit, the
fruit continues to ripen.
THE COLOR CHART
The industry uses a seven-stage standard to
chart ripening.
RIPENERS
GET
BANANAS
1
GREEN
CONSUMERS
Some prefer
green
bananas,
which are less
sweet, and
cook them.
2
3
BIG STORES
AND
DISTRIBUTORS
4
5
FINAL
CONSUMERS
6
7
edible bananas are tossed
each day in Great Britain
Some view spotted bananas as
spoiled, but that’s when they’re
sweetest. In many countries,
bananas are the most wasted fruit.
AN UNCERTAIN
FUTURE
The Cavendish banana variety may
follow in the footsteps of the once
popular “Gros Michel,” which
disappeared in the 1950s after a
fungal epidemic.
OF COMMERCIALLY SOLD BANANAS
ARE CAVENDISH VARIETY
The banana variety is seedless and therefore must be cloned by farmers.
The Cavendish variety was chosen
because it’s resistant to fungus, but
genetic uniformity makes it more
vulnerable, and a new fungus strain,
TR4, is damaging Asian crops and
quickly spreading.
CURRENT RANGE OF TR4 FUNGUS STRAIN
Banana producing countries
Growing Pains
Monocropping—growing the
bananas on the same land year
after year—is cost-effective for the
farmer, but it also depletes soil and
makes a crop susceptible to pests,
which can more easily spread.
NEXT GENERATION
Scientists are studying the
banana's genetic material in an
attempt to engineer a more
disease-resistant one. Many wild
varieties are not suitable for the
export process—and most palates.
Graphic: ÁLVARO VALIÑO.
SOURCES: DAVID TURNER, UNIVERSITY OF
WESTERN AUSTRALIA; ALISTAIR SMITH,
BANANA LINK; BIOVERSITY INTERNATIONAL;
FAO (Banana consumption and
production data for 2013-14); BUREAU
FOR THE APPRAISAL OF SOCIAL IMPACTS FOR
CITIZEN INFORMATION (BASIC); PROMUSA
Bananas don’t grow in every country, but they are ubiquitous
nonetheless. As the world’s most popular fruit, they account for
roughly 75 percent of the tropical fruit trade and more than a
hundred billion are eaten annually. Getting ripe bananas to
market is a surprisingly intricate process. Facilities unique to the
industry control the ripening stage to ensure bananas are the
ideal green or yellow when they reach stores, depending on
consumer preference. —Kelsey Nowakowski
THE BANANA PLANT
Grown in tropical and subtropical areas around the world, bananas are botanically
classified as a berry. The word banana stems from the Arabic word “banan,”
meaning finger.
Is It a Tree?
The banana plant is the
largest herbaceous
flowering plant.
COUNTRIES GROW
It takes nine months
to grow a complete
bunch, up to 170
bananas.
(10 feet)
VARIETIES
Unlike seasonal fruits, bananas grow year-round
and are plentiful.
JAN
DEC
KING OF FRUITS
As the world’s most consumed fruit, bananas are a dietary staple. Bananas are
the world’s most exported fruit, but they’re popular at home too: Eighty-five
percent are produced for domestic consumption.
Annual Fruit Production
In millions of metric tons
114
Bananas
Watermelons
Apples
Grapes
Oranges
Coconuts
Mangoes
Plantains
Tangerines/
mandarins
Other melons
Though plantains belong to same genus as bananas,
the crops are counted separately.
WORLD BANANA CONSUMPTION
In millions of metric tons
86
IN INDIA, CHINA, BRAZIL,
AND INDONESIA
These countries
consume most of
their production so
they are not among
the top exporters.
FIVE PER DAY
Rwanda consumes the most per
capita, 279 kg (616 lbs) a year,
versus 12 kg (26 lbs) in the U.S.
Consumption data refers to food supply,
the amount of bananas available.
A Banana's Journey
Advances in refrigerated transportation helped bananas become the world’s
most traded fruit. Many supermarkets price them at or near cost—called a
loss leader—to get customers into their stores.
A CASE STUDY
FROM ECUADOR TO NEW YORK CITY, UNITED STATES
of WORLD exports
of WORLD IMPORTS
TOP EXPORTER
TOP IMPORTER
Value of a Dollar's
Worth of Bananas
Supply Chain Stages
Grown on large farms, banana
bunches are cut down while still
green by workers using
machetes. The Cavendish
variety is the mostly wide
cultivated type.
plantation workers
plantation owner
Once harvested, the bananas are
transported to packing sheds,
where they are inspected,
washed, and boxed for export.
To prevent them from ripening
in transit, pallets of bananas
are shipped in refrigerated
containers.
international
trade
Container ships pass through
the Panama Canal en route to
Wilmington, Delaware, which
handles about a million tons of
bananas a year, the busiest
“banana port” in the U.S., and
second globally only to
Antwerp, Belgium.
When the bananas arrive in port,
they clear customs and are
trucked to special facilities,
where a ripening process is
closely monitored (detail below).
ripening and
distribution
Bananas are delivered to
regional distribution centers and
wholesalers before being sent
to supermarkets and bodegas.
TO MARKET
Bodegas sell individual yellow
bananas, ready to eat, while
larger stores prefer slightly green
"hands" that can last for days.
The Art of Ripening
Ripeners are scientific specialists in the banana supply chain. Their facilities
feature high-tech rooms that control ventilation, humidity, temperature, and
ethylene gas, a natural ripening chemical.
A typical 5-day schedule
GAS
To start the ripening
process, ethylene gas is
pumped into the room. A
normal chemical
by-product of ripening
fruits, the gas circulates
throughout the room
overnight.
Green bananas are tested
for temperature and color
before being placed in a
consistently ventilated
room that's kept at 70 to
90 percent relative
humidity. Bananas ripen at
60 to 70 degrees.
A BANANA'S NATURAL
ETHYLENE CAN RIPEN
OTHER PRODUCE
AND EVEN SPOIL
SOME SENSITIVE
TO THE GAS.
The fruit is ready to ship
to retailers. Bananas
ideally ship to stores
around stage three
(chart below). While in
transit, the fruit
continues to ripen.
The fruit is still green but
begins to “break” and
transition in color. A
specialist closely monitors
the fruit, waiting for a faint
yellow hue to be visible
throughout.
Ethylene gas is flushed
out of the room, which is
then ventilated with fresh
air and kept at 60 to 62
degrees. The fruit is still
green, but now has been
triggered to ripen.
THE COLOR CHART
The industry uses a seven-stage standard to chart ripening.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
RIPENERS GET
BANANAS
BIG STORES AND DISTRIBUTORS
FINAL CONSUMERS
GREEN CONSUMERS
Some prefer green bananas,
which are less sweet, and
cook them.
edible bananas are tossed
each day in Great Britain
Some view spotted bananas as
spoiled, but that’s when they’re
sweetest. In many countries,
bananas are the most wasted fruit.
AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE
The Cavendish banana variety may follow in the footsteps of the once popular
“Gros Michel,” which disappeared in the 1950s after a fungal epidemic.
The Cavendish variety was chosen
because it’s resistant to fungus, but
genetic uniformity makes it more
vulnerable, and a new fungus strain,
TR4, is damaging Asian crops and
quickly spreading.
OF COMMERCIALLY SOLD BANANAS
ARE CAVENDISH VARIETY
The banana variety is seedless and therefore must be cloned by farmers.
CURRENT RANGE OF TR4 FUNGUS STRAIN
BANANA PRODUCING
COUNTRIES
Growing Pains
NEXT GENERATION
Monocropping—growing the
bananas on the same land year
after year—is cost-effective for the
farmer, but it also depletes soil and
makes a crop susceptible to pests,
which can more easily spread.
Scientists are studying the
banana's genetic material in an
attempt to engineer a more
disease-resistant one. Many wild
varieties are not suitable for the
export process—and most palates.
Graphic: ÁLVARO VALIÑO. SOURCES: DAVID TURNER, UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA; ALISTAIR SMITH,
BANANA LINK; BIOVERSITY INTERNATIONAL; FAO (Banana consumption and production data for
2013-14); BUREAU FOR THE APPRAISAL OF SOCIAL IMPACTS FOR CITIZEN INFORMATION (BASIC); PROMUSA
Bananas don’t grow in every country, but they are ubiquitous nonetheless. As the world’s
most popular fruit, they account for roughly 75 percent of the tropical fruit trade and
more than a hundred billion are eaten annually. Getting ripe bananas to market is a
surprisingly intricate process. Facilities unique to the industry control the ripening stage
to ensure bananas are the ideal green or yellow when they reach stores, depending on
consumer preference. —Kelsey Nowakowski
THE BANANA PLANT
Grown in tropical and subtropical areas around the world, bananas are botanically classified as a berry.
The word banana stems from the Arabic word “banan,” meaning finger.
Is It a Tree?
The banana plant is the
largest herbaceous
flowering plant.
Unlike seasonal
fruits, bananas
grow year-round
and are plentiful.
COUNTRIES
GROW
It takes nine months
to grow a complete
bunch, up to 170
bananas.
(10 feet)
VARIETIES
KING OF FRUITS
As the world’s most consumed fruit, bananas are a dietary staple. Bananas are the world’s most exported
fruit, but they’re popular at home too: Eighty-five percent are produced for domestic consumption.
Annual Fruit Production
In millions of metric tons
WORLD BANANA CONSUMPTION
In millions of metric tons
86
114
Bananas
Watermelons
Apples
Grapes
Oranges
Coconuts
IN INDIA, CHINA, BRAZIL,
AND INDONESIA
Mangoes
Plantains
These countries
consume most of
their production so
they are not among
the top exporters.
FIVE PER DAY
Tangerines/
mandarins
Rwanda consumes the most per
capita, 279 kg (616 lbs) a year,
versus 12 kg (26 lbs) in the U.S.
Other melons
Though plantains belong to same genus as bananas,
the crops are counted separately.
Consumption data refers to food supply,
the amount of bananas available.
A Banana's Journey
Advances in refrigerated transportation helped bananas become the world’s most traded fruit.
Many supermarkets price them at or near cost—called a loss leader—to get customers into their stores.
A CASE STUDY
FROM ECUADOR TO NEW YORK CITY, UNITED STATES
of WORLD exports
of WORLD IMPORTS
TOP EXPORTER
TOP IMPORTER
Value of a Dollar's
Worth of Bananas
Supply Chain Stages
Grown on large farms, banana
bunches are cut down while still
green by workers using
machetes. The Cavendish
variety is the most widely
cultivated type.
plantation workers
plantation owner
Once harvested, the bananas are
transported to packing sheds,
where they are inspected, washed,
and boxed for export.
To prevent them from ripening in
transit, pallets of bananas are
shipped in refrigerated containers.
international trade
Container ships pass through the
Panama Canal en route to
Wilmington, Delaware, which
handles about a million tons of
bananas a year, the busiest “banana
port” in the U.S., and second globally
only to Antwerp, Belgium.
When the bananas arrive in port,
they clear customs and are
trucked to special facilities, where
a ripening process is closely
monitored (detail below).
ripening and distribution
Bananas are delivered to regional
distribution centers and
wholesalers before being sent to
supermarkets and bodegas.
TO MARKET
Bodegas sell individual yellow
bananas, ready to eat, while larger
stores prefer slightly green "hands"
that can last for days.
The Art of Ripening
Ripeners are scientific specialists in the banana supply chain. Their facilities feature high-tech rooms that
control ventilation, humidity, temperature, and ethylene gas, a natural ripening chemical.
A typical 5-day schedule
GAS
To start the ripening
process, ethylene gas is
pumped into the room. A
normal chemical
by-product of ripening
fruits, the gas circulates
throughout the room
overnight.
Green bananas are tested
for temperature and color
before being placed in a
consistently ventilated
room that's kept at 70 to
90 percent relative
humidity. Bananas ripen at
60 to 70 degrees.
A BANANA'S NATURAL
ETHYLENE CAN RIPEN
OTHER PRODUCE
AND EVEN SPOIL
SOME SENSITIVE
TO THE GAS.
The fruit is ready to ship
to retailers. Bananas
ideally ship to stores
around stage three
(chart below). While in
transit, the fruit
continues to ripen.
Ethylene gas is flushed
out of the room, which is
then ventilated with fresh
air and kept at 60 to 62
degrees. The fruit is still
green, but now has been
triggered to ripen.
The fruit is still green but
begins to “break” and
transition in color. A
specialist closely monitors
the fruit, waiting for a faint
yellow hue to be visible
throughout.
TEMPERATURE
SERVES AS AN
ALARM CLOCK,
WAKING UP A
BANANA.
THE COLOR CHART
The industry uses a seven-stage standard to chart ripening.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
edible bananas are
tossed each day in
Great Britain.
RIPENERS GET
BANANAS
BIG STORES AND DISTRIBUTORS
Some view spotted bananas
as spoiled, but that’s when
they’re sweetest. In many
countries, bananas are the
most wasted fruit.
FINAL CONSUMERS
GREEN CONSUMERS
Some prefer green bananas, which are
less sweet, and cook them.
AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE
The Cavendish banana variety may follow in the footsteps of the once popular “Gros Michel,”
which disappeared in the 1950s after a fungal epidemic.
CURRENT RANGE OF TR4 FUNGUS STRAIN
OF COMMERCIALLY
SOLD BANANAS ARE
CAVENDISH VARIETY
The banana variety is seedless and therefore must be cloned by farmers.
BANANA PRODUCING
COUNTRIES
Growing Pains
NEXT GENERATION
The Cavendish variety was
chosen because it’s resistant
to fungus, but genetic
uniformity makes it more
vulnerable, and a new fungus
strain, TR4, is damaging
Asian crops and quickly
spreading.
Monocropping—growing the
bananas on the same land year
after year—is cost-effective for the
farmer, but it also depletes soil and
makes a crop susceptible to pests,
which can more easily spread.
Scientists are studying the
banana's genetic material in an
attempt to engineer a more
disease-resistant one. Many wild
varieties are not suitable for the
export process—and most palates.
Graphic: ÁLVARO VALIÑO. SOURCES: DAVID TURNER, UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA; ALISTAIR SMITH,
BANANA LINK; BIOVERSITY INTERNATIONAL; FAO (Banana consumption and production data for 2013-14);
BUREAU FOR THE APPRAISAL OF SOCIAL IMPACTS FOR CITIZEN INFORMATION (BASIC); PROMUSA
For more on the history of cultivation and the future of the Cavendish, check out our three-part series on the banana.