How to identify fruit that has been artificially ripened with chemicals.

Unripe fruit, not yet ready for harvest, is often bought by traders who then use chemicals to force it to ripen. Most of these chemicals are highly toxic and harmful to consumers.

According to Dr. Vo Mai, Vice President of the Vietnam Horticultural Association, unlike vegetables and tubers which can be cooked in boiling water to release some of the residual chemicals, most fruits are eaten raw, so the residue enters the body directly.

Dr. Mai suggests that consumers should choose seasonal fruits grown domestically. Regarding imported fruits, especially those imported through unofficial channels from China, it's advisable not to consume the same type continuously for extended periods, as the body won't have enough time to eliminate residual toxins.

For fruits like pears and apples, which are imported from various countries, it's advisable to choose products from countries with high food safety and hygiene standards, such as South Korea, the United States, and Australia.

According to the experience of several inter-provincial agricultural product traders, naturally ripened fruits differ significantly from those artificially ripened with chemicals. Mr. Nguyen Viet Nga, a key trader specializing in agricultural products from Thu Duc Market to Binh Phuoc, stated that some fruits, such as tomatoes and bananas, are often ripened by traders using calcium carbide and sulfur, resulting in plump, shiny skins. However, when held, they feel like they are coated with a thin layer of powder, and many fruits even show white or greenish-brown spots due to contact with calcium carbide.

Mangoes also exhibit this phenomenon, but it's not due to chemical treatment; rather, many growers spray fungicides directly onto the fruit before harvesting, causing residual chemicals to create spotted patches on the fruit's surface.

When buying unripe rambutan that has been artificially ripened with chemicals, buyers should check for small fruits that appear wilted or old, have a lot of juice leaking out when split in half, and have mushy flesh.

Longan fruits treated with chemicals have a smooth, glossy peel lacking the natural roughness, and those with sensitive palates may find a pungent, strong taste when peeled and eaten. For fruits with large stems, such as durian and jackfruit, which are often artificially ripened by injecting chemicals into the stem, buyers should pay attention to the thorns on the surface. If the thorns are still green, dense, and the stem is soft, mushy, and slightly dark in color, be wary.

Naturally ripened jackfruit has wider spacing between its thorns, the tips of the thorns turn dark brown due to age, and the fruit has a uniform color. Buyers should be suspicious of unusually large fruits, as they may have been treated with growth stimulants. For example, with dragon fruit, naturally large fruits typically weigh only 800g - 1kg, while those treated with chemicals can weigh 1.2 - 1.4kg.

According to Phunuonline-TL