Panama disease leaves and progresses to younger leaves until the entire plant dies. Gros Michel was the only type of banana eaten in the United States from the late 19th century until after World War II. From the beginning, however, a serious disease was present in the banana plantations of Central America. The problem was first diagnosed in Panama after which it was named. Over several decades, the fungus spread from Panama to neighboring countries, moving north through Costa Rica to Guatemala and south into Colombia and Ecuador. The banana industry was in a serious crisis, so a new banana thought to
Crop destruction can be usefully harvested by this means, such as sugar cane. "The Grapes of Wrath" by John Steinbeck tells about destruction of oranges, potatoes, pig carcasses and other agricultural products during the Great Depression. Crop destruction Crop destruction is the deliberate destruction of crops or agricultural products to render it useless for consumption or processing. It can be made by burning, grinding, dumping into water, or application of chemicals. It should not be confused with crop residue burning, which burns useless parts of the crop. Related to crop destruction is alternate, low-price use of agricultural products. A large portion of