Disease-Resistant Banana and Plantain Varieties
Researchers at the College of Agriculture, Science and Education (CASE)-OFANA Biotechnology Centre in Jamaica have developed banana and plantain lines resistant to Tropical Race 4 (TR4) and tolerant to Sigatoka, two diseases that threaten the country's banana industry. Biotechnologist La Toya Roberts said the team selected the Formosana banana and FHIA 4 plantain for these traits and is preparing in advance, since the TR4 soil-borne fungus has not yet been detected in Jamaica but can devastate plantations once established. The improved planting material has been distributed to Jamaica Producers and the Banana Board for research and genetic conservation, with the plants now bearing fruit at trial sites. The lab is also producing disease-free planting material for yam and ginger, employs five CASE students, and maintains a germplasm bank to preserve valuable varieties, with tissue culture technician Michska Douglas describing the approach as central to the future of agriculture.
Nano-Formulated Crop Nutrition via Trunk Injection
The Philippine Coconut Authority has signed a Memorandum of Agreement with Japan's Mitsui to run a two-year field trial of a nano-formulated nutrient system applied by trunk injection rather than soil fertilization. The agreement, signed on July 27 after eight months of talks, will see Mitsui provide the capsule technology while the PCA selects sites and supplies technical guidance. The system delivers nutrients and crop-protection materials matched to each tree's condition, an approach already validated in oil palm plantations and potentially useful against coconut pests. PCA administrator Dexter Buted framed the trial as part of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s push for a technology-driven agriculture sector, while Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. emphasized that coconut is the country's top agricultural export and a backbone of rural incomes.
Sargassum Seaweed as an Agricultural and Industrial Feedstock
Caribbean governments and companies are converting record sargassum landings into fertilizers, bioplastics, laminates and biofuels as cleanup costs rise. Mexico has collected roughly 96,151 metric tons of sargassum so far in 2026, up from 92,783 tons last year, according to government data, and is awaiting delivery of a new open-sea collection vessel within about a month. Environment Minister Alicia Barcena said at least 11 of nearly 200 tracked Mexican projects have industrial-scaling potential, with 39 already producing commercial goods. Sargassum refiner Carbonwave is exporting fertilizer and, after regulatory clearance from Mexico's sanitary watchdog, plans to supply domestic farmers, while the Quintana Roo state government is preparing to expand a biofuel plant in Cancun.
Follow-Up Signals
The PCA-Mitsui coconut field trial runs for two years from late July 2026, with site selection and PCA technical support underway. Mexico expects its new open-sea sargassum vessel within roughly a month and will host a joint EU-Caribbean conference on sargassum in Cancun in early October to coordinate cleanup and product development.
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