Banana – The food of life

Banana is a fruit that grows in clusters on banana trees. These trees are cultivated for the production of their fruit. The banana grows to a height of four to eight (5-8) feet with leaves up to seven (7) feet long, each tree, when in the productive stage bearing young shoots which gradually mature as the main tree produces a bunch of green bananas. These trees are related to bananas and figs.

Bananas grow in a hanging cluster with up to sixteen (16) fruits per hand and twelve to sixteen (12-16) hands per cluster. When they mature, they are harvested, the tree being cut down to allow a new shoot to mature.

The banana is one of the freshest fruits we can get today, it has a high iron content and is low in salt; It is a good source of potassium, high in fiber, and B vitamins. The fruit is in a generous supply year-round, is inexpensive, and a reliable source of carbohydrates.

Plantains can also be cut green in their immature stage and used for a variety of dishes; when cooking for example, we make banana casserole, banana coo-coo, plantain marinade with salted fish and many more. When dried, it can be eaten as chips and ground into flour.

When ripe, the fruit is picked green and exported to various countries, where the valuable product is sold in supermarkets, fruit and vegetable shops alike. It’s versatile and can be eaten out of hand, sliced, and served in fruit cups; They are also good for making fruit baskets, baking banana bread, cakes, pastries, banana splits, and the famous banana punch.

However, bananas are used as a stable food in many tropical and non-tropical countries around the world and provide a livelihood for communities. In some parts of the world such as Asia, Africa, Latin America and the West Indies, where we export and import the basic products that provide a balanced diet for millions of people.