Author: Amy Spear

The National Banana Development and Extension Program has been renewed for a further five years, with a clear focus on re-engaging with growers at a farm level. Now in its third iteration, the project (BA19004) isbfunded by Horticulture Innovation via the banana research and development levy,…

Garradunga banana grower Ricky Sahota and his family: wife Parveen, daughter Ojal, 5, and son Ansh, 18 months. By Lea CoghlanA run-down, rusted Nissan Pulsar sits in the yard of Innisfail banana grower Ricky (Randeep) Sahota.It’s not mechanically sound, nor is it used anymore on…

By Professor Andre Drenth Bananas are susceptible to three important bacterial wilt diseases that reduce productivity and quality.These diseases are Moko, blood disease and banana Xanthomonas wilt and they all cause similar symptoms of leaf wilting, vascular discoloration and fruits that remain green on the outside…

By Tony Pattison, Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF), South JohnstoneBACKGROUNDPanama disease Tropical Race 4 (TR4) was first found in the Tully valley in March 2015.The unknowns surrounding this discovery left banana growers and the future of the Australian banana industry in a precarious position.…

ABGC director and 2013 Nuffield Scholar Paul Inderbitzin For Lakeland banana grower Paul Inderbitzin winning a Nuffield Scholarship was life-changing. The current Australian Banana Growers’ Council director used the scholarship, supported by Horticulture Innovation Australia and the Banana Levy, to study fruit quality, biosecurity and waste…

By Lea Coghlan When Mike McGrath tasted a frozen chocolate banana at a school fete in Mission Beach several years ago, it was a holy grail moment. “It was amazing,” Mr McGrath recalled. “It was an average home-made version, but I remember thinking … I have found a…