The banana is the most popular fruit, it is widely exported throughout the whole world. Bananas are one of the few fruits that are more consistent regarding quality. The fruit continues to ripen after being harvested and in spite of other fruits, it usually tastes good even if it's collected quite early from the plant. 

Still, there are lots of things to consider not only if you want to buy the best bananas in town, but also when it comes to how to store them optimally and when to eat them. 

Bananas facts 

Bananas are the fourth most popular agricultural produce, over a hundred billion bananas are eaten every year on the planet. The banana contains around 74 percent of water and grows on the worlds largest herb. The most common banana is the Cavendish variety which can be found in most supermarkets in the world. 

5 things to consider when buying bananas

1. Try different varieties and/or banana brands from different countries to find your favorite kind. 
2. Consider when you're going to eat them - if you want to eat them straight away make sure to pick out the spotty and soft bananas, because this is an indication of ripeness. However, if you want them in one weeks time, pick out some of the more greenish bananas and let them ripen at home. 
3. You want to pick the bananas that are soft and spotty as earlier mentioned, but another thing that can make a significant impact on the bananas taste is how long it had the chance to ripen before getting harvested. You would want to look for bananas that are more yellowish on the stem, but also bananas that are more bulky and fat. If the bananas are very narrow and tightly put together, they are most likely not been optimally developed on the plant before being picked. 
4. Always be careful when handling ripe bananas, be mindful about how you transport them to avoid damaging your sweet bananas on the way home. 
5. Some banana varieties don't always get brown spots when they're ripe. Touch them and feel for softness, another thing you can do is to "peel it carefully", without actually doing it, just try to feel the stems tightness levels. Most bananas should be peeled very easily when ripe without much force. 

A very well-ripened banana. Spotty, soft and easy to peel. 

How to store your bananas 

• Warmth, equals faster ripening process, if you want to speed up the process, even more, try to put them in a paper bag together with an apple. 
• Colder storage equals a slower ripening process, store them in a cold room or your fridge, and they'll last a couple of more days. If you don't get the chance to eat them before they turn overripe, cut them up into pieces and freeze them. Then you always have some bananas ready for your morning smoothie. 
• Always put the bananas the right side down, on their side. They should form a bridge on your kitchen counter. If you leave them the other way around the bananas are more likely to get damaged by their own weight-pressure. 

This is how you should lay down your bananas to avoid any bruises. If supermarkets were aware of this simple fact - people could avoid bringing home already damaged bananas. 

Thank you for reading, I hope you learned reading this and feel free to check out more of my health and fruit-based content here.