The global banana industry is on high alert, with Fusarium Wilt Tropical Race 4 (FW-TR4) and Sigatoka diseases posing serious challenges for banana growers and global traders around the world, says Hun Chong Tan, Business Head of Innoterra Bioscience. “The Cavendish variety is at the verge of extinction if these diseases are left uncontrolled. FW-TR4 alone threatens 80% of the world’s banana plantations, with an estimated US$25 billion global economic risk. Once it enters the soil, farms can suffer 100% crop loss, with the land becoming unusable for decades.”

Hun Chong Tan underscores the urgency by pointing to recent developments across major banana-producing regions. “The recent FW-TR4 outbreak in Ecuador, the world’s largest Cavendish exporter, has created panic among growers, governments, and global buyers. Ecuador supplies more than one-third of the globally traded bananas, so even a single confirmed farm case can have major implications for market stability, pricing, and supply continuity. Other key producing countries have also experienced increasing disease pressure in recent years, resulting in higher crop-management costs and greater focus on sustainable protection strategies.”

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In response to these escalating disease pressures, Innoterra Bioscience, part of the Swiss–Indian agritech group Innoterra, introduced BanacXin, a 100% natural, organic-certified biocontrol solution designed to both prevent and reverse banana disease outbreaks. Hun Chong Tan describes BanacXin as a dual-action vaccine that protects healthy plants and aids recovery in already infected ones. “BanacXin has demonstrated up to 92% efficacy against FW-TR4 and 88% against Sigatoka. Unlike traditional chemicals, it leaves no toxic residues, is safe for biodiversity, and does not promote pathogen resistance, which is an increasingly important consideration for long-term disease control.”

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Hun Chong Tan highlights results from field validation conducted over four years in India and the Philippines across diverse climatic and soil conditions: “BanacXin restored productivity on land previously quarantined and considered unusable. Across multi-location trials, growers reported improvements in plant vigor, yield performance, and resilience to stress.” He adds, “The product is available in foliar spray, drench, and injection formats to accommodate different farm structures and management styles. Approvals and advanced trials are also underway in Australia, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.”

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While BanacXin is not a shelf-life solution, Innoterra continues to invest in research and innovation focused on improving crop resilience and long-term sustainability in the banana sector. The company’s bioscience roadmap includes developing complementary biological solutions and agronomy support programs aimed at helping growers improve productivity, reduce chemical dependency, and adapt to disease pressure and climate-driven stress.”In parallel, we are developing InnoGreen™, a natural Cavendish mutant tissue-culture variety that has shown 90% tolerance to FW-TR4 and has nearly doubled the productivity of some commercial varieties,” he shares.

Looking ahead, Hun Chong Tan expects adoption to grow further as more growers seek solutions that meet both commercial and regulatory expectations. “With increasing disease outbreaks and pressure to reduce chemical residues in global supply chains, growers are actively looking for scalable biological solutions. BanacXin is uniquely positioned to offer both performance and sustainability.”

For more information:
Harshad Ghatge
Innoterra
Tel: +91 91 67 209 955
Email: [email protected]

Hun Chong Tan
Tel: +60 195 701 548
Email: [email protected]
www.innoterra.com