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View Full Version : Differences in varieties used in different markets


Nicolas Naranja
10-24-2009, 02:47 PM
I've read that apparently the European market gets a slightly different market than the American market. Supposedly it is slightly smaller and sweeter. I am curious as to whether or not they are eating the dwarf cavendish instead of Gran Nain.

Richard
10-24-2009, 04:29 PM
The Suez canal gives a whole different meaning to "banana boat".

Dalmatiansoap
10-24-2009, 04:43 PM
There is enormeus difference between European and American market in everything. I dont see why would that be different whan it comes to naners?
After all we here have only ONE typ of them in stores and they are all labeled as "Cavendish II class". Mostly Bonitas. I have only ones foundt Dole bananas in store and they were packed in bags already.
:woohoonaner:

Jack Daw
10-24-2009, 05:05 PM
There is enormeus difference between European and American market in everything. I dont see why would that be different whan it comes to naners?
After all we here have only ONE typ of them in stores and they are all labeled as "Cavendish II class". Mostly Bonitas. I have only ones foundt Dole bananas in store and they were packed in bags already.
:woohoonaner:
We've got several varieties obviously, but I believe that all of them are Cavendish. One group may be something like Dwarf Cavendish fruit and the other one like Grand Nain. First group has typical, medium-sized fruit with very sweet and slightly granular pulp (or granulating in ripeness if you wish) and the other one has firm, yet not that sweet and very compact flesh, more white than yellow.

That's all just ordinary culture. Then there are monsters in Organic section...

I've usually bought only those cultivated in Southern America, although I've seen on several occasions also naners imported from India.

Nicolas Naranja
10-24-2009, 05:26 PM
I've usually bought only those cultivated in Southern America, although I've seen on several occasions also naners imported from India.


Apparently there is some American money going into Banana projects in Mozambique and Angola. I'm guessing that they are trying to ship to Europe. I'm kinda curious about how the Canary Islands bananas taste.

musa_monkey
05-28-2011, 08:48 AM
I've read that apparently the European market gets a slightly different market than the American market. Supposedly it is slightly smaller and sweeter. I am curious as to whether or not they are eating the dwarf cavendish instead of Gran Nain.

Certainly within the UK they are all of the Cavendish type

Kostas
05-28-2011, 05:42 PM
Although this is an old thread,i though i would mention that the Canary Islands cultivate a local type of Dwarf Cavendish and the same is true for the Greek island of Crete. Crete bananas are very sweet and remind me of the "Niņo" bananas sometimes sold here as well in taste and in size. They have much thicker skins though being a Cavendish cv, and are just a tad different in texture from the baby bananas and slightly less sweet. They are way better than the usual Cavendish bananas sold.

Richard
05-28-2011, 06:15 PM
Although this is an old thread,i though i would mention that the Canary Islands cultivate a local type of Dwarf Cavendish and the same is true for the Greek island of Crete. Crete bananas are very sweet and remind me of the "Niņo" bananas sometimes sold here as well in taste and in size. They have much thicker skins though being a Cavendish cv, and are just a tad different in texture from the baby bananas and slightly less sweet. They are way better than the usual Cavendish bananas sold.

That's very helpful. Recently at one of the Farmers Markets I attend, there have been peoples from North Africa asking for bananas of that description. I'd like to learn more about the plants in terms of p-stem height, bunch size, etc. If they grow in Crete, then they likely grow here.

Kostas
05-30-2011, 03:47 AM
Unfortunately,i have never seen the Cretan banana plants myself,only their bananas sold here and have read some stories from their producers online(in Greek). They are a local type of Cavendish nana,probably not much if at all different from the usual Dwarf Cavendish. The only other info i have on the plants is that their bunches typically weight 35kg. What surely plays an important role is that these bananas spend very little time in transit and so they are fresher,possibly cut more ripe than the imported ones,and so they are much much sweeter and with firmer flesh!