Searching for new banana cultivars to overcome production constraints in the Australian subtropics

Growing bananas in the diverse range of climatic and geographic conditions of the Australian subtropics has many challenges. Some of these include long periods of low temperatures, regular strong winds and often lack of irrigation. The presence of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense race 1 and subtropical race 4 in the subtropics further limits the ability of growers to plant alternative cultivars which have market acceptance in Australia. These challenges result in low overall production and significant impacts on achieving consistent quality throughout the year. Another challenge for subtropical growers is that they must compete in an open market with fruit from tropical regions where growers experience less of these constraints. Nevertheless, subtropical banana production has some advantages over tropical regions, including reduced pest and disease pressure, especially leaf disease, and smaller, sweeter fruit. New opportunities for niche markets are emerging due to the experience of Australian travellers in Africa, Asia and Central and South America where they are exposed to a wide array of local banana cultivars. At the same time, multicultural migration is creating demand for cultivars other than Cavendish. Overcoming the many challenges faced by the subtropical industry in Australia will require the development of new cultivars to improve resilience in the production sector and also to meet the increasing demand for greater consumer choice. Fusarium wilt-resistant dessert and cooking cultivars are under evaluation in the Australian subtropics for suitable agronomic characteristics and favourable prospects in the marketplace.