Climate change will drive TN farmers bananas: Report
The report added that bananas are vulnerable to indirect climate change impacts as well.
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CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu has the largest area under banana cultivation and the same is increasing by the year. However, going by a recent global study on banana cultivation, the most popular fruit is under threat from climate change, which puts the state and its farmers on the line.
The report – titled 'Going Bananas: how climate change threatens the world's famous fruit', published by the international development charity Christian Aid – has predicted that by 2050, countries like India and Brazil are expected to see declining yield due to climate change, with key exporters like Colombia and Costa Rica also to be affected.
"Extreme weather events impact banana production in a variety of ways. Banana plants are sensitive to water shortages whilst flooding also has adverse effects because of the resulting erosion of the nutrient-dense soils the plant needs," the report said.
The report added that bananas are vulnerable to indirect climate change impacts as well.
Fungal and other diseases are increasingly thriving in hot/wet conditions, which are an outcome of climate change and are contributing to the overall reduction in banana productivity. This increased risk is enhanced for Cavendish bananas because this commercial crop, about half of all bananas grown, comes from cloned banana plants.
"Tamil Nadu has the highest land area under banana production, but Maharashtra has the highest productivity, as it specialised in the monocultures of Cavendish bananas, with higher density planting and use of irrigation,” the report pointed out.
However, in India's central belt, including banana-exporter Maharashtra, extreme rainfall events have increased threefold since the 1950s, while there has been an overall decline in annual rainfall. This would adversely impact about 43% of the population dependent on agriculture for their employment, the report warned.
Apart from recommending the nations to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial times, the report emphasised the need for support to banana growers and others in the agricultural community who rely on a stable climate for their livelihoods.
