Achieving sustainable cultivation of bananas Volume 1: Cultivation techniques

Part 1 Banana production and its challenges
1.The origin, domestication and dispersal of bananas: Hugo Volkaert, National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Thailand;
2.Understanding the banana industry: monoculture and beyond: Dan Koeppel, Independent Journalist and Researcher, USA;
3.Banana cultivation in Africa: W. K. Tushemereirwe and J. Kubiriba, National Agricultural Research Laboratories, Uganda;
4.Challenges and opportunities for smallholders in banana value chains: William Tinzaara, Bioversity International, Uganda; Dietmar Stoian, Bioversity International, France, Walter Ocimati, Enoch Kikulwe and Gloria Otieno, Bioversity International, Uganda; and Guy Blomme, Bioversity International, Ethiopia;

Part 2 Improving practices across the banana value chain
5.A functional approach to bunch formation in banana: D. W. Turner, School of Agriculture and Environment, The University of Western Australia, Australia; and D. J. Gibbs, Consultant, Australia;
6.Banana plant propagation methods: Sharon D. Hamill, Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Australia;
7.Conserving banana germplasm through field genebanks: Mike Smith, Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Australia;
8.Good agricultural practices: an end or a starting point for more sustainable banana production?: Charles Staver, Bioversity International, France;
9.Challenges in cultivation of bananas in the subtropics: Víctor Galán Saúco, Instituto Canario de Investigaciones Agrarias, Spain;
10.Nutrition and soil management in banana cultivation: Jetse J. Stoorvogel, Wageningen University, The Netherlands; and Rafael A. Segura, CORBANA S.A., Costa Rica;
11.Harvesting and packaging of bananas: Juan José Aycart, Dole, Ecuador;
12.Ripening systems for bananas: Frits Popma, Popma Fruit Expertise, The Netherlands;

Part 3 Assessing and improving sustainability
13.Life cycle assessment and carbon footprint of banana cultivation: Louis Bockel, Laure-Sophie Schiettecatte and Orane Debrune, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Italy;
14.Sustainable banana cultivation: from standards to multiple solutions: Sietze Vellema and Kees Jansen, Wageningen University, The Netherlands;
15.Organic banana cultivation and sustainability: Frans Wielemaker, Consultant (formerly Director of Research at Dole Fresh Fruit International), Costa Rica;

Dr Gert H. J. Kema is Professor of Phytopathology and chair at the Laboratory for Phytopathology of Wageningen University, The Netherlands. He initiated and coordinated several international banana research programs focusing on Fusarium wilt of banana and black Sigatoka as well as interdisciplinary research projects and public-private-partnerships on other perennial crops. He is a cofounder of several spin-off companies focusing on banana improvement, disease management and bioprocessing.

Dr André Drenth is Professor in Tropical Plant Pathology and Theme Leader for crop protection in the Centre for Horticultural Science at the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation (QAAFI), at the University of Queensland. He leads several projects on tropical plant diseases and he initiated and led a national Banana Plant Protection Programme set up to protect Australia’s banana industry from the impact of a range of pests and diseases.

"The book provides an excellent overview of banana cultivation across the world and how the adaptation and adoption of inter-disciplinary management strategies ensure sustainable production…a comprehensive foundation of knowledge on which future research strategies can be built." (Book Review Published in Chronica Horticulturae – Dr Karin Hennweg, ARC-ITSC, South Africa)