Bananas: a great source of potassium, an excellent source of vitamins, and—as everyone knows—the most recognizable fruit on the planet. After all, you don’t come across many fruits that look like crescent moons. (Or… Um… Something else.) Moreover, not every banana is the same. Some are more curved, some are less.
What’s the deal?
Well, according to the experts at Dole, who are known for their fruit—and, in particular, their bananas—the reason is nothing short of poetic.
Bananas go through a process that’s scientifically called “negative geotropism.” What that means, in layman’s terms, is that as bananas grow, they become too heavy for the plant, and start sinking towards the ground. So the curve in the banana is due to the fruit’s dogged pursuit of the rays of sun. Yes, the banana is actually curling up against its own weight, much like you would do in a Pilates class, in an effort to get more sunlight.
The reasoning for this actually has to do with where the bananas originated: the rainforest, where there is notoriously little sunlight. So, the banana adapted, evolved, and survived.
Per Dole, “If the fruit were to grow towards the small amount of light that penetrates sideways through the vegetation, the plant could overbalance and topple over. So bananas developed a way of growing towards the light without destabilising the plant.”
