The global banana trade has skyrocketed in recent years, with an estimated export volume of 21 million tons in 2019, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The currently most traded variety is the Cavendish banana. However, this is susceptible to the devastating fungal disease Fusarium wilt of banana (FWB), caused by a strain called Tropical Race 4 (TR4).
Spreading globally since the 1960s, TR4 eventually infiltrated Africa a decade ago—firstly reported in Mozambique on two commercial banana farms in 2013. No evidence of TR4 infestation could be found outside of these farms in 2015 (based on data published only recently), suggesting effective disease containment.
However, a team of researchers led by Anouk van Westerhoven of Wageningen University & Research and Utrecht University confirmed the presence of TR4 beyond the farm boundaries with the initial infestations, indicating its uncontrolled spread in Mozambique. This alarming result, newly published in the journal Plant Disease, demonstrates the failure of previous management methods.
Source: scienmag.com