Large quantity of chemical-laced mangoes seized

TRICHY: Civic authorities on Tuesday seized and destroyed nearly 7,000 kg of mangoes which were found ripened using calcium carbide. This followed a raid conducted by corporation health officials in the godowns of fruit merchants located across the Gandhi Market.

Corporation authorities said carbide stones which were used for ripening mangoes were also seized along with powders of the same chemical. Ash from the stones engulfed the godowns during the raid.

The seized fruits were dumped into a garbage truck and were taken away for destroying. City health officer Dr S Maariappan led the team of civic officials during the raid. Officials are yet to estimate the total value of the destroyed mangoes.

Though traders have been warned about the hazards of artificial ripening, wholesale merchants still practice it. Speaking after conducting the raids, Maariappan said shops were found selling mangoes that were artificially ripened and they were seized to protect the health of consumers.

Earlier during two raids 21.15 tonnes of artificially-ripened mangoes of several varieties were seized. A team from the food safety wing had raided 50 shops in Gandhi Market on April 30. Seized mangoes kept in 110 cases were valued at Rs 1.47 lakh. On May 20, a team led by district collector Jayashree Muralidharan seized about 18.9 tonnes of mangoes from six godowns at Mambalasalai in Srirangam.

Food safety officials have been alerting public about the risks involved in consuming mangoes. They advise people to buy mangoes with care. Artificially ripened mangoes lack greenish patches and spot only black patches and wrinkles. Consumption of mangoes treated with calcium carbide is extremely hazardous because it contains traces of arsenic and phosphorus. Such mangoes can cause mouth ulcers, gastric problems, diarrhoea and skin rashes.

Calcium carbide produces maximum artificial heat which helps ripen the mangoes within 25-26 hours. Calcium carbide can be used when the mangoes are 30-40% ripe. Traders across the country use the same technique to ripen bananas.