Tips and Guides

Banana is one of the most common and widely grown fruit crops in the Philippines. It is also one of the country’s major dollar earners, and has consistently ranked next to coconut oil and prawns in terms of value earnings during the last five years.

In 1991, banana topped local production among the other major fruits such as pineapple and mango, thus eating up more than one-third of the production pie.

Banana has various uses. The ripe fruit is pureed, candied, and preserved in various forms when not eaten fresh. Its extract is used in the manufacture of catsup, vinegar, and wine. The unripe fruit is powdered and chipped.

In rural areas, the young leaves are pounded to suppress bleeding and treat wounds. The leaves are also widely used as packing materials for fruits and vegetables in market centers. Banana fiber is manufactured into rope, sack, and mat. Sheets of paper and paper boards are also made from banana peel. Banana blossom is exported dried. Filipino housewives use it in special dishes.

VARIETY

Banana is native to Southeast Asia where the climate is warm and humid. Of the 57 banana cultivars, the following are the most common in the Philippines:

1. Saba
grows to as tall as 20 feet; fruit is angular; has thick peel that is green when unripe, yellow when ripe; flesh is white when ripe; gestation period is 15 to 16 months. Read more…

1. For a whole day, expose to the suns heat wood shavings of white lauan.

2. Place this in plastic bags and refrigerate at 15°C.

3. Place the prawns in a basin of sea water. Little by little, add rice until the temperature is 18°C.

4. Remove the prawns from the water and place them orderly in a box( with sides lined with Styrofoam).

5. Place at 300 gms ground ice in a plastic bag, seal and put atop the shaving.

6. Close the box with masking tape.

7. On the next day, wash the prawns in iced seawater.

A Japanese expert on prawns at the SEAFDEC in Iloilo tired this to prolong the shelf life of the prawns even when this is packed.

When the boxes were opened the next day, 93% of the prawns were still alive. When put in water, they immediately swam.

Source: The Phil Farmers Journal, March 1980,http://elgu2.ncc.gov.ph, photo from http://www.aquarticles.com.