By Milliam Murigi
Bananas, the world’s favourite fruit, face an uncertain future due to the climate crisis, a new report has revealed.
The report, Going Bananas: How climate change threatens the world’s favourite fruit, by the international development charity Christian Aid, reveals that 60 percent of the best banana growing areas are in danger from rising temperatures.
“Climate change is impacting banana farmers around the world, who are battling daily with unpredictable weather patterns, scorching sun, floods, hurricanes, and increased pests and diseases,” says Anna Pierides, Fairtrade Foundation’s senior sustainable sourcing manager for bananas.
According to the report, extreme weather, rising temperatures and climate-related pests pose a threat to banana-producing regions, sparking calls for faster emission cuts and more support for farmers.
Bananas thrive in temperatures ranging between 15°C and 35°C, but recent shifts in climate are pushing conditions beyond this ideal range. In parts of East Africa, for instance, temperatures are increasingly hovering around 36–38°C during hot spells, placing stress on banana crops.
The plants are also highly sensitive to water shortages, making prolonged dry spells particularly damaging. Storms present another major threat by shredding banana leaves, which hampers the plant’s ability to photosynthesise effectively.
“Compounding these challenges, rising temperatures have fueled the spread of fungal infections, especially Fusarium Tropical Race 4, a devastating disease capable of wiping out entire plantations,” reads part of the report.
To reverse this decline and protect the world’s best banana-growing regions, Christian Aid is calling for richer, polluting nations to urgently reduce their carbon emissions. The development agency also calls for banana growers and agricultural communities to receive targeted support from international climate finance to adapt to the changing climate they have done little to cause.
Osai Ojigho, Director of Policy and Campaigns, Christian Aid, said: “Bananas are not just the world’s favourite fruit, but they are also an essential food for millions of people. We need to wake up to the danger posed by climate change to this vital crop. The lives and livelihoods of people who have done nothing to cause the climate crisis are already under threat.”
Adding that “As part of the Paris Agreement, countries will this year submit new national climate action plans, which will update their emissions reduction targets. This is a huge opportunity for countries to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels to clean energy, whilst also ensuring climate finance reaches people in desperate need of it. World leaders must not slip up.”
According to Holly Woodward-Davey, Project Coordinator at Banana Link, which works across the banana supply chain, banana growers are facing ever more precarious conditions as a consequence of climate change. Water scarcity and increased temperatures lead to lower yields and pressure on the income of rural people. It causes more dangerous working conditions for workers exposed to ever-increasing heat.
“Due to heat stress, the banana plant becomes more vulnerable to diseases and infections. Without systemic change, we risk witnessing the devastation of the Cavendish banana to Fusarium Tropical Race 4, a fungal infection that attacks the roots of plants and can lead to the complete loss of farms and plantations,” says Woodward-Davey.
According to him, the climate crisis and the associated biodiversity crisis demand a rethink of industrial food production systems, which depend on the use of increasing amounts of harmful chemicals. Governments must continue to take decisive action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and ban the most toxic chemicals, while investing in transitions to fair, stable and healthy food systems.”
On her side, Pierides says that soaring production costs are also adding extra pressure to already fragile livelihoods.
“Without fair prices, banana farmers simply cannot make ends meet. Fairtrade is committed to raising incomes, living standards and the resilience of banana producers to enable them to deal with the changing climate and to continue farming,” says Pierides.
Sally Musungu, an environmental researcher with the Schlumberger Foundation who has been working on the intersection between climate change and bananas, reveals that climate change intersects with various factors influencing banana production, including diseases and crop pests. To support banana farmers effectively, through our projects, we are trying to understand the totality of these interactions and the importance of the constraints in each growing region.
“Broad, one-size-fits-all solutions won’t work we need targeted, localized recommendations to address the diverse and intensifying threats to banana cultivation under a changing climate. We also urgently need to move beyond the Cavendish and explore the rich genetic diversity within banana species,” she says.
Fortunately, according to her, a rich pool of genetic diversity exists within banana species, including hundreds of under-researched varieties with potentially valuable climate-resilient traits. By exploring this genetic diversity and leveraging emerging tools such as gene editing, scientists can accelerate the development of new banana varieties that can better serve farmers and adapt to future climate conditions.
