Two cultivars from Embrapa are resistant to the most severe banana disease worldwide

Brazil is the only country in the Americas prepared to face the most severe form of Fusarium wilt, race 4 tropical (R4T). The confirmation came from research by Embrapa conducted in Colombia that proved the resistance of the cultivars BRS Princesa and BRS Platina to this pathogen. The discovery opens the way for the use of these varieties as natural barriers against the spread of the disease on a global scale. Endemic in all banana-producing regions, Fusarium wilt causes billions of dollars in losses by contaminating crops and imposing restrictions on exports. The fungus that causes Fusarium wilt - Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc), which also occurs in 17 countries in Asia, Africa, and Oceania, is spread by contaminated soil from shoes and tools, visually healthy but infected banana plant seedlings, and host ornamental plants. Previously known as Panama disease, race 4 Tropical has not yet reached Brazil, but is present in neighboring Colombia (identified in 2019), Peru ...