I did not know about this. This I why I stopped eating apples. They're too firm and I can't buy ripe ones anywhere. They don't ripen at home, eiher, and leaving them out for a month in the hopes they will ripen attracts fruit flies. Yes, I have actually left them out that long.
It sounds like this chemical works too well. --- bob_brigante <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/25/dining/25fruit.html > > "THE apples of autumn are as crisp and juicy as > ever. But most will > be staying that crisp and juicy, if less aromatic, > months longer > because of a gas called SmartFresh that growers and > packers are using > to slow ripening. > > SmartFresh is just starting to be used effectively > on produce other > than apples. Cantaloupes and bananas treated with it > are already > being sold. > > Officials of the manufacturer, AgroFresh, as well as > apple > wholesalers, say that 55 to 60 percent of the apples > sold in the > United States are treated with SmartFresh, a > synthetic gas introduced > in 2002. The cost to growers is about a penny for > every pound of > apples, and the treatment is most likely harmless to > humans, > according to pesticide experts. > > The gas blocks the ripening effect of ethylene, a > natural plant > hormone that makes fruit ripen and eventually decay. > A six-month-old > Jonagold treated with SmartFresh is as firm as one > stored for two > months under traditional methods, and a Red > Delicious stays crunchy > for three weeks after storage, instead of one, > according to James > Mattheis, a postharvest physiologist for the federal > Agriculture > Department in Wenatchee, Wash. > > Since the 1960's growers have kept apples firm in > warehouses by > reducing oxygen and raising carbon dioxide levels in > what is called > controlled atmosphere storage. That has allowed some > varieties to be > sold all year, although they don't keep their full > flavor and can go > soft and mealy in stores and homes. > > > > > > > To subscribe, send a message to: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Or go to: > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ > and click 'Join This Group!' > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > ____________________________________________________________________________________ Want to start your own business? Learn how on Yahoo! Small Business (http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com) To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
