How likely is this to actually happen? Is there any way to reverse this asexual nature and have the phallic shaped banana begin to breed again?
Will we have to rely on genetic engineering to continue to enjoy bananas in the future, or is the 10 year guess just scaremongering?
Wild bananas exist, but the fruits contain seeds. Cultivated varieties are mutants/hybrids that do not produce seeds, so they have to be propagated by cuttings (or offset shoots, which appear around the base of the main plant, but that’s the same thing really).
As long as the wild species and varieties still exist, I see no reason why the work done to bring them into cultivation cannot be repeated - we wouldn’t end up with a variety that is exactly the same as what we have now, but that might be a good thing.
Personally, I think it’s a conspiracy to make us eat more bananas; I’m happy to oblige.
I could live without bananas
(that’s all I have got to say on the subject)
You know they grow upside-down, the stupid things.
Actually, it is a scaremongering conspiracy to support genetic modification research a guy (Frison) is doing in Europe, in my opinion. More info in previous threads here and here.
And, Attrayant, they grow right-side-up, you must be eating the upside-down. Silly.