What Do Original Bananas Look and Taste Like?

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Plus, how and why humans cultivated the bananas we know today
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If you’re a banana lover, then you’ve got to experience a real, wild banana! These smaller, seed-filled fruits are native to Southeast Asia and pack a similar taste and nutrition to the ones we buy in grocery stores today. In this article, we’ll dive into the differences between wild and cultivated bananas , plus show you where you can find a real banana today. And, if you’re really ready to nerd out, we’ll even cover the history of banana crossbreeding and how we ended up with modern bananas in the first place. Keep scrolling to learn more!

Real Banana Appearance

From the outside, wild bananas look shorter and thinner than modern store-bought bananas. When you bite into one, they aren’t smooth and seedless—they're full of big, black seeds the size of peppercorns that make eating them difficult. They have a similar taste and texture to slightly unripe store-bought bananas.

Section 1 of 5:

Wild Bananas vs. Supermarket Bananas

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  1. 1
    Real bananas are full of large, black seeds. If you bite into a banana from the supermarket, you don’t have to worry about accidentally biting into something hard and crunchy because they’re seedless. Wild bananas, however, are full of large, black seeds about the size of peppercorns. They usually run in 3 rows up and down the length of the fruit. [1]
    • The seeds are technically edible, but are hard and have a bitter taste. [2] We recommend eating around them!
    • The seeds make wild bananas harder to eat and less tasty, which is why they’re not sold in stores.
  2. 2
    Real bananas are smaller than store-bought bananas. In the wild, bananas are thinner, shorter, and overall scrawnier than the cultivated variety you find at the grocery store (about the size of a finger). [3] In fact, the word “banana” comes from the Arabic banan , meaning “finger.” [4]
    • Depending on the variety, some wild bananas can seem shorter and fatter (or “stockier”) than the long, slender bananas we’re familiar with.
    • Fun fact: Today, a group of bananas growing together from one stem is called a “hand” of bananas—possibly due to the word’s Arabic origins.
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  3. 3
    Real bananas taste and feel like slightly unripe cultivated bananas. Again, the exact variety of banana you’re eating influences the taste and texture. Generally, most wild bananas are sweet and a little bit more bland-tasting than supermarket bananas. They also have a dense, creamy texture similar to a slightly green store-bought banana. [5]
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Section 2 of 5:

Where to Find Real Bananas

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  1. 1
    Wild bananas grow mainly in tropical regions of Southeast Asia. The ancestors of the bananas we eat today— Musa Acuminata and Musa Balbisiana —are native to regions like the Malay Peninsula, Indonesia, the Philippines, and New Guinea, where they can still be found growing in the wild today. Due to ancient travelers and traders spreading their love of bananas, these Musa varieties also began growing in parts of Africa, India, Polynesia, and even southern China by 200 CE. [6]
    • Banana plants thrive in humid, tropical climates with high temperatures and rainfall. Today, they’re grown in every tropical region on Earth and are the fourth-largest fruit crop in the whole world! [7]
    • Fun fact: It’s believed that bananas were the first true fruit to develop over 10,000 years ago.
  2. 2
    They’re also available for sale through specialty fruit markets. Unless you happen to be vacationing near the jungles of Malaysia, you’re unlikely to stumble upon a wild banana (or any other kind besides the modern Cavendish variety available in grocery stores). To get your fix, look for specialty or exotic fruit suppliers online, like Miami Fruit or iHeartFruitBox .
    • Or, you might be able to find various banana varieties (including some wild bananas) at specialty fruit stores, some Asian grocery stores, or even some botanical gardens.
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Section 3 of 5:

Why did humans modify bananas?

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  1. 1
    Humans first crossbred banana varieties to make them more edible and enjoyable. Wild bananas are small and full of large seeds, meaning they’re difficult to eat and there’s not as much tasty pulp to enjoy when you bite into one. The kinds of bananas we’re used to today probably started to be developed in Africa around 650 CE, when farmers began crossing Musa Acuminata and Musa Balbisiana to make their offspring larger and more seedless. [8]
  2. 2
    Sophisticated Musa crossbreeding began about 100 years ago for mass consumption. As demand for bananas spread across the world in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, banana farming and cross breeding techniques advanced to keep up. Around a century ago in Trinidad, banana growers started specializing in crossbreeding Musa varieties to make them more resistant to pests and diseases, as well as to have a shorter growing cycle and yield more fruit per harvest. [9]
    • Humans are still adjusting their banana growing methods to stay ahead of new agricultural challenges, including climate change and the spread of new plant diseases.
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Section 4 of 5:

What kind of bananas do we eat today?

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  1. 1
    The Cavendish banana dominates the global banana market today. The Cavendish ( Musa Cavendishii ) was first grown in England from a specimen imported from Mauritius in 1830. It was grown at Chatsworth House in Devonshire by head gardener Joseph Paxton and named “Cavendish” after the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. One banana from this first batch won a medal at the 1836 Horticultural Society show, and a few years later, crates were flown to places like Samoa and the Canary Islands to jumpstart the banana industry in new locations. [10]
    • Today, nearly all bananas exported to places like Europe and North America are Cavendishes. Most bananas sold and grown in China are also Cavendishes, as well as about ¼ of all bananas consumed in India.
    • In fact, if you were born after 1950, you’ve probably only ever purchased and tasted a Cavendish banana. [11]
  2. 2
    However, Cavendish bananas may vanish from markets in the coming years. The bananas you buy at the grocery store today are identical clones of the first Chatsworth plant. [12] This makes sense economically because it’s easy and profitable to grow a single variety with a short growth cycle that can survive international shipping. But biologically, this leaves the entire species of banana very vulnerable to diseases since there’s no genetic diversity to help them adapt to new threats from pathogens.​​ [13]
    • Currently, a new strain of Panama disease (Fusarium wilt) is worrying scientists and banana growers worldwide. If an uncontrollable outbreak occurs, up to 80% of bananas globally could be affected.
    • This wouldn’t be the first time a disease nearly wiped out a whole species of banana. Prior to the Cavendish’s popularity, an earlier strain of Panama disease destroyed the Gros Michel banana crop.
    • Gros Michel bananas were the dominant banana variety in stores before the Cavendish took their place. They were slightly bigger and sweeter than Cavendishes, but Cavendishes were the only commercially viable banana that could grow in Panama disease-infected soil at the time. [14]
    • Fun fact: The loss of the Gros Michel banana is why artificial banana flavoring doesn’t really taste like actual bananas. The flavor was designed to mimic a whole different variety!
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Section 5 of 5:

Frequently Asked Questions

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  1. 1
    Do wild bananas still exist? Yes! Wild banana varieties still grow in tropical climates in Southeast Asia, some parts of Africa, southern China, India, and some Pacific nations like Polynesia.
  2. 2
    Are the bananas we eat cloned? Yes, almost all bananas available at supermarkets are clones of the original Cavendish banana. This is because it’s economically smart to grow a single variety that’s hardy and enjoyable. Before the Cavendish, clones of the Gros Michel banana were popular.
  3. 3
    Are real bananas illegal? No, wild bananas are not illegal to have or eat. However, it comes down to who owns the tree you’re picking the banana from. In many places, it’s illegal to eat fruit from a tree that someone else owns (unless you have their permission). But, if you happen to find one in the true wilderness, then by all means, eat away!
  4. 4
    What are the health benefits of real bananas? Wild bananas are super nutritious, just like store-bought bananas. They’re rich in potassium, vitamin C, dietary fiber, and essential vitamins and minerals. Some varieties, like Musa acuminata , also have medicinal uses. They’ve been used in traditional medicine to treat fever, cough, bronchitis, dysentery, allergic infections, and even STIs. Upon study, they were found to have antioxidant, antidiabetic, anticancer, and antimicrobial properties. [15]
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      References

      1. ↑ https://malcolmtattersall.com.au/wp/2023/04/taste-testing-australias-wild-bananas/
      2. ↑ https://miamifruit.org/products/seeded-banana-pre-order
      3. ↑ https://malcolmtattersall.com.au/wp/2023/04/taste-testing-australias-wild-bananas/
      4. ↑ https://www.babbel.com/en/magazine/fruit-names
      5. ↑ https://youtu.be/boMZU4rEUEI?t=293
      6. ↑ https://abgc.org.au/our-industry-old/history-of-bananas/
      7. ↑ https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/species/banana/
      8. ↑ https://abgc.org.au/our-industry-old/history-of-bananas/
      9. ↑ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0734975013001663
      1. ↑ https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-35131751
      2. ↑ https://www.wired.com/2017/03/humans-made-banana-perfect-soon-itll-gone/
      3. ↑ https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-35131751
      4. ↑ https://www.wired.com/2017/03/humans-made-banana-perfect-soon-itll-gone/
      5. ↑ https://www.wired.com/2017/03/humans-made-banana-perfect-soon-itll-gone/
      6. ↑ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27988402/

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