Dear Editor,
Over the years I’ve repeatedly penned my concerns regarding farmers lacing their produce, mainly fruits and vegetables, with chemicals and putting it on the market without giving the produce time for the chemicals to work themselves out.
Under the previous administration and this present one, I’ve complained but those responsible failing to act or addressing this issue properly. Today, you go to the market, make your purchases, store it either in or out of a fridge and chances are that you would end up discarding most of it, because it has become inedible.
Our country is still in the Stone Age in terms of medical testing and I am quite certain that the drugs in the fruits and vegetables have some effect on us and are not being monitored properly. Government alone is not responsible for this lapse since there are various agencies responsible for monitoring and carrying out random checks but they are failing.
Editor, presently, it’s the season for mangoes and without doubt, it’s one of the most widely selling fruits, green or ripe. There is a chemical commonly used as ripening agent, which is being used on vegetables and fruits to give them the appearance of being ripe before they actually are.
Now there are vendors who purchase mangoes for resale and they soak them in the chemicals to make them appear ripe. Sometimes, these mangoes are green and they are being placed in the chemicals to appear ripe. If you innocently make a purchase and if you don’t consume it the same day, it would turn black or have abnormal black spots inside, making it inedible.
This is a new development and many fruits especially mangoes and bananas, are being forced to ripen prematurely.
Yours faithfully,
Sahadeo Bates
