Crackdown on oranges dyed with toxic chemical
Print Edition
AUTHORITIES in eastern Jiangxi Province say they will crack down on fruit sellers dyeing local specialty oranges with cancer-causing chemicals and artificially ripening them.
This follows reports of Gannan navel oranges grown in the southern part of the province appearing for sale weeks earlier than expected.
The city government admitted tampering had taken place but insisted only a few sellers were involved.
However, their illegal acts threatened the reputation of local fruit, the government said, and a further check will be carried out.
It emerged that in Ganzhou City oranges have been ripened using plant growth stimulator ethrel. National regulations say ethrel can only be used for certain fruit — but not including oranges.
And seemingly mature fruit bought in Xunwu County — which produces one out of five oranges in Ganzhou — were found to contain carcinogenic red Sudan dyes, China National Radio reported.
These industrial dyes are usually used to color plastics and synthetic materials.
Under Chinese regulations, oranges cannot dyed with either edible pigments or industrial chemicals.
But additives are often used to improve the appearance of the fruit, the report said.
These incidents were first reported by Beijing media when Gannan navel oranges, which could officially only by picked from October 15 at the earliest, appeared on sale at the beginning of the month.
One seller said most Gannan oranges do not ripen until mid-November.
Twenty workshops were found filled with Gannan navel oranges being ripened.
“We have to use ripening agents otherwise no one will buy. It’s a kind of industry rule,” the seller admitted.
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