Australia’s Office of the Gene Technology Regulator (OGTR) has received an application from the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) for the commercial cultivation of genetically modified (GM) banana plants. The GM banana plants have been modified for resistance to the fungal disease Fusarium wilt tropical race 4 (TR4), also known as Panama disease. QUT indicated that it does not intend the GM banana plants to replace the current Cavendish banana cultivars growing in Australia, but rather to provide a safety net to the Australian banana industry should it be heavily impacted by Panama disease.