Banana ranks among the world's most valuable primary agricultural commodities. In 2011, combined global production was
about 145 million tonnes with a gross production value of US$44.10
billion (FAOSTAT, 2013). Bananas are the eighth most important
food crop in the world and the fourth most important among the
world's least-developed countries.
About 87% of the bananas that are produced worldwide are
consumed by producers or sold in local or regional markets
(FAOSTAT, 2013). Locally consumed bananas are significant staple
foods in Africa, Asia and tropical America, and diverse cultivars are
eaten raw, cooked and brewed (Karamura et al., 2012). The
remaining 13% (worth US$8.9 billion in 2011) are sold in international markets (FAOSTAT, 2013). The exported fruit result in E-mail address:kelly12@ufl.edu.
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Crop Protection
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/cropro
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2015.01.007