This is how you can identify artificially ripened mangoes

While it is important to pick naturally ripened fruits, malpractices in the industry lead to the free availability of artificially ripened mangoes, which can be extremely harmful. According to a statement from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), globally, artificially ripened fruits are considered safe for human consumption if done using “safe ripening agents”.

However, calcium carbide, also known as ‘masala’, which is commonly used to ripen mangoes is strictly prohibited under the FSSAI’s Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales Regulation, 2011. The nodal food agency also warns that acetylene gas, released during the ripening process with calcium carbide, is hazardous to handlers and poses serious health risks to consumers. As such, FSSAI emphasises that ripening of fruits should be done in such a way that it should enhance their nutritional value, and also make it safe for consumers.

So, how can you know if your favourite fruit is safe for consumption?

Experts suggest that the press and smell test typically works if one doesn’t know the source of mango.

“Ideally, mango should be oval, bean-shaped. So you should select mangoes that are plump and rounded, especially around the stem. On smelling, one should feel the sweetness. Also, in chemically ripened mangoes, the surface has a mixture of yellow and green colour patches whereas, in naturally ripened mangoes, it will be a uniform blend of green and yellow,” said Dr Santosh Pandey, naturopath, Rejua Energy Centre, Mumbai.

Here’s what to know about mangoes (Source: Getty Images/Thinkstock)

How to identify if mangoes are naturally ripened?

*Put the mangoes in a bucket of water.
*If the mangoes sink, they are naturally ripened.
*If they float, they are harvested artificially.

This is the most popular home hack; but does it truly work? Yes, said Dr Pandey. “Also, an artificially ripened mango will have very little or no juice dripping out,” he shared, adding that an organic mango, on other hand, will have a lot of “natural juice”.

Once cut into half, you can see that in artificially ripened mangoes, the colour of the pulp near the skin of mango is different from the inner pulp. “But in naturally ripened mangoes, it will be a uniform yellow,” Dr Pandey said.

How to pick the right mangoes?

According to FSSAI:

*Purchase fruits and vegetables from known sellers/reputed stores/ dealers who claim that fruits are not ripened by using harmful/banned chemicals.
*Wash fruits thoroughly with running potable water before eating.
*Avoid fruits with black blotches on the skin as these fruits are likely to be ripened by acetylene gas produced from calcium carbide.

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