Abstract:

Bananas are among the most important food crops worldwide (Samson, 1992). They include diverse types such as dessert, cooking, roasting and beer bananas. These types are based on use of their end products (Acland, 1971). Dessert bananas are those bananas consumed raw at ripeness and are usually distinguished by the sweet flavour of the fresh fruit when ripe. Cooking bananas are consumed when cooked and in much of the world they have always been referred to as plantains (Swennen & Vuylsteke, 1987). However, there are two types of cooking bananas. The first type is cooked when the fruits are green and provides a starchy staple nutritionally similar to the potato (Simmonds, 1966). Bananas of this type can be allowed to ripen and theneaten as dessert bananas. For this reason they cannot be called true plantains. The second type of cooking banana is unpalatable raw even when the fruits are ripe and therefore, requires cooking before being consumed. These are the true plantains (Swennen & Vuylsteke, 1987). The beer bananas are bananas whose pulp is bitter and astringent. They can be eaten neither raw nor cooked. However, juice and alcohol can be made from this type of bananas, hence the name. Bananas are also scientifically referred to by their genome groupings. Thecrop encompasses a range of diploids, triploids and tetrapioids. These are categorised into genome groups on the basis of their ploidy levels and the genomes which they contain. Simmonds and Shepherd (1955) suggested that edible bananas originated from two wild and seedy species, Musa acuminata Colla (2n=22), and Musa balbisiana Colla (2n=22) which are native to Southeast Asia, resulting in a series of diploid, triploid and tetrapioid bananas. The resulting genome groups were classified as AA, AB, AAA, AAB, ABB, AABB, AAAB, ABBB with the letters A and B representing the contributions of M. acuminata and M. balbisiana respectively. Table 1.1 gives a few examples of cultivars with their genome group and use.