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Bananas Almost Went Extinct in the 1950s
Have you ever had a banana-flavored candy or drink and wondered why the flavor tasted nothing like an actual banana? Well, what if I told you that it actually does taste like an actual banana? The fact is, the banana flavor that most are familiar with closely resembles that of a specific variety of bananas that is very different from the Cavendish banana we know and enjoy today. This means that the bananas enjoyed by your grandparents or great-grandparents were completely different. So what happened to the original banana flavor?
The banana flavoring that we are all familiar with was modeled after the Gros Michele banana, which was the dominant variant since the 19th century when bananas were introduced to the Western world. Gros Michele became popular due to its smaller size, making it advantageous for ships to carry large amounts. The Gros Michele is the kind that is shorter, fatter, much stronger, and distinct in flavor than the Cavendish. It would make sense that the artificial flavoring of bananas would resemble that of the Gros Michele.
