Banana

History

Introduction Origin And Distribution Area And Production Uses

Introduction

  • Banana is one of the most important major fruit crops grown in India. In respect of area and production, it ranks second only to mango in this country. The banana culture in India is as old as Indian civilization.

    • Banana plantation

  • It seems that it is one of the earliest fruit crops grown by mankind at the dawn of civilization. In India, bananas are so predominant and popular among people that poor and rich alike like the fruit.
  • The bananas were grown in Southern Asia even before the prehistoric periods and the world's largest diversity in banana population is found in this area. Hence, it is generally agreed that all the edible bananas and plantains are indigenous to the warm, moist regions of tropical Asia comprising the regions of India, Burma, Thailand and Indo China.

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Origin And Distribution

  • The edible banana is believed to have originated in the hot, tropical regions of South-East Asia. India is believed to be one of the centres of origin of banana.
  • Its cultivation is distributed throughout the warmer countries and is confined to regions between 300N and 300S of the equator.
  • Banana is also grown, in many other countries of the world namely Bangladesh, the Carribbean Islands, the Canary Islands, Florida, Egypt, Israel, Ghana, Congo, South Africa, Fiji, Hawaii, Taiwan, Indonesia, the Philippines, South China, Queensland and Sri Lanka.
  • The highest acreage of bananas is in Africa, where bananas reach their maximum importance as starchy food. They are the staple food of the Buganda in Uganda, the Wahaya in Bukoba and the Wachagga in Tanzania.

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World Banana Area, Production and productivity during 2012

  • India leads the world in banana production with an annual output of about 24869 16,820 thousand M.T.

Country

Area in ha. Production in Mt Productivity in Kg/ha

Brazil

481116

6902184

14346

Burundi

178036

1184075

6650

China

412800

10845265

26272

Colombia

79301

1982702

25002

Costa Rica

41426

2136437

51572

Ecuador

210894

7012244

33250

India

721790

24869490

34455

Indonesia

105000

6189052

58943

Philippines

454179

9225998

20313

Thailand

136000

1650000

12132

Uganda

130000

570000

4384

World

4953315

101992743

20590

Source : FAOstat citation

  • Within India, Tamil Nadu leads in total area and production with 5136600 T from 111360 ha.

Districtwise Area and Production of Banana in Andhra Pradesh 2012 -13

District

Area in Hectares

Production in Mtonnes

Srikakulam

2525

88375

Vizianagaram

7755

271425

Visakhapatnam

1580

55300

East Godavari

15471

541485

West Godavari

7859

275065

Krishna

1632

57120

Guntur

5745

201075

Prakasam

757

26495

Nellore

1322

46270

Chittoor

1920

67200

Cuddapah

14752

516320

Ananthapur

8743

306005

Kurnool

5765

201775

Source: Department of Horticulture, AndhraPradesh (erstwhile)

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Uses Of Banana

  • Bananas are put into varied uses in India, especially in South India. Almost every part of the plant is used someway or other.
  • In South India, though hundreds of banana varieties are existing, only eight to ten have attained the status of commercial importance.
  • The fruits are used for desert purposes as well as culinary purposes. The varieties like Poovan, Rasthali, Robustra, Dwarf Cavendish are grown for table purpose.
  • The plantains and Monthan group yield fruits which are high in starch content and hence they are used as staple food in some of the African countries.
  • In India, Nendran is grown mainly for table purposes and for making 'Chips'. The Monthan fruits, both immature and mature ones, are used for culinary purposes as it mixes well with other vegetables in delicious 'curry' preparations of South Indian house holds.
  • In South India, no festive decoration are said to be complete unless the entrance gates are decorated with full grown banana plants with attractive bunches.
  • In all auspicious occasions in the life of a South Indian, banana has got important place either as a table fruit or as an offering to God in temples.
  • The banana male buds are harvested soon after the female phase is over and are sold as a vegetable in the markets.
  • Similarly, the tender stem, which bears the peduncle, is extracted by removing the leaf sheaths of harvested pseudostem is sold as vegetable.
  • The corm of developing suckers, rich in carbohydrates, is also cooked and eaten in the form of different curry preparations mixed with pulses by the poor class people.
  • The lamina of the banana leaves are still widely used as a substitute for dinner plates and is a regular income for the growth.
  • The dried leaves are used for cup and hat makings by small scale industries.
  • The pseudostem is used for paper manufacture.
  • The dried leaf sheaths give an excellent fibre and are used in garland making as well as for extracting fibre for cloth making.
  • The banana pseudostem ash is said to be a sure remedy for snake poison as tribals practice it.

Composition and Uses

  • Banana is the cheapest, plentiful and most nourishing of all fruits. It contains nearly all the essential nutrients including minerals and vitamins and has several medicinal properties. Banana is a rich source of energy.
  • About 24 bananas each weighing around 100 g would provide the energy requirement (2400 cal/day) of a sedentary man. The composition of the fruit is given below.

Moisture

70.0 per cent

Carbohydrate

27.0 per cent

Crude fibre

0.5 per cent

Protein

1.2 per cent

Fat

0.3 per cent

Ash

0.9 per cent

Phosphorus

290.0 ppm

Calcium

80.0 ppm

Iron

6.0 ppm

b -carotene

0.5 ppm

Riboflavin

0.5 ppm

Niacin

7.0 ppm

Ascorbic acid

120.0 ppm

 

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Andhra Pradesh

Banana

Banana Management