Meet the Professor… Dr Luis Pocasangre!

During the first week of our trip we had a class session with Professor Luis Pocasangre. I knew from the moment he began lecture that his passion for bananas ran very deep. Dr. Pocasangre is a Honduras native I and an expert in agricultural plant science, agronomy, and food science, but his real interest is in bananas. He has done many years of research and work with many different varieties of bananas. From the moment I walked in the class room I was intrigued. He had different types of banana bunches spread out across two tables in the front of the room.

I never knew there were so many types of bananas and that only one type, the cavendish, is available in the Unites States. The bunches he brought were not ripe but I knew I needed to try some. Dr. Pocasangre’s lecture was so informative. We learned about the origin of bananas, which is in the Asian/Pacific region of the world. Also, we learned about where they are mostly grown in the Americas: Costa Rica, Colombia, Honduras, and Ecuador. The most popular type of banana and available type was originally the Gros Michel. But this variety was nearly wiped out by the Mal de Panama disease. Now, the most common type of banana is the cavendish, it does not have nearly as much flavor! Later the next week during our stay Professor Pocasangre brought us a bunch of different types of bananas to try! It was a great experience to try all the banana varieties side by side. It was a great experience to try all the different types of bananas and one of my favorite parts of the trip!