Banana

The origin and spread of banana

Banana is a fruit that comes from the banana tree and is generally sterile. As such, it comes from domesticated varieties. Wild forms of banana are found mainly in Southeast Asia, from India to Papua New Guinea. These banana trees are rich in seeds and poor in pulp. Their domestication dates back around 6500 years to New Guinea. However, the spread of banana quickly extended as far as southern China and northern Australia. An Indian legend, for its part, recounts that banana originated on the island of Ceylon, the earthly paradise from which Adam and Eve were driven out, their bodies covered with banana leaves. Thus, a Syrian tradition makes banana a fruit of paradise. Its cultivation began in Madagascar around the year 500 of our era. It was then brought to the Mediterranean by the Arabs starting in 650. The Portuguese later introduced it to the Canary Islands in the sixteenth century, and it thus became one of the most popular fruits of our modern era. Banana is a slightly curved fruit, often clustered on the banana tree in bunches called “hands”. Its skin is yellow when ripe, otherwise green. Its flesh, for its part, is cream-white in color.

The scent of banana

The main aroma of banana is isoamyl acetate. It is this compound that is used to reproduce the natural scent of banana in perfumery laboratories. Indeed, as with many fruits, it is impossible to extract its essential oil. While banana is highly appreciated on the culinary level, its scent remains relatively rare in perfumery. Nevertheless, its sweet, green and fruity effluvia bring real richness to the fragrances that contain it. Moreover, it is an ingredient suited equally to masculine and feminine creations.

Widely consumed around the world, banana is a fruit that can be enjoyed dried, raw or transformed into desserts or jam. In perfumery, it notably appears in Enjoy by Jean Patou, Florabello by Diptyque and Sunny Frutti by Escada. It thus immerses consumers in a world halfway between Africa and the Caribbean, bringing them a sun-drenched breath of air.