Golden Bananas may be the answer to Vitamin A deficiencies that plague children in Uganda. Vitamin A deficiency remains one of the world's major public health problems despite food fortification and supplements strategies, but scientists have developed a banana that has the potential to solve the problem.
Researchers from Queensland University of Technology in Australia have perfected a technique that makes bananas dramatically increase their production of Vitamin A using an approach called biofortification. Biofortification involves processes that allow scientists to control the expression of certain genes to produce substances that improve the nutritional quality of food.
When tested, the fortification generated Vitamin A levels that far exceeded the testing goal, and pose a viable option for both food fortification and supplementation. More than 12 years of research were needed to refine the method to perfection.
Lead Professor James Dale explains the banana’s unique golden hue in a press release, “Over the years, we've been able to develop a banana that has achieved excellent pro-vitamin A levels, hence the golden-orange rather than cream-coloured flesh.”
The bananas have the potential to save millions of children around the world. About 650,000 to 700,00 children die from Vitamin A deficiency each year. Another several thousand more experience symptoms of blindness, delayed growth, infertility, dry skin, and more.
For many communities in Uganda, bananas constitute the primary source of food. The staple is high in starch, but lacking in key micronutrients, especially vitamin A. The introduction of a modified banana could easily be used to tackle many of the nutrient and vitamin deficiencies as well as pose a new method for food sustainability in the future.