As part of a crack down on the sale of mangoes ripened with calcium carbide, the officials of the Department of Food Safety and Standards raided two mango mandis here on Thursday.
K. Krishnappa, District Food Safety Officer, told The Hindu that during the raid on a shop owned by Naresh on O.T. Road and another shop owned by Shafiulla Ahmed on B.H. Road, packets containing calcium carbide were found in the mango crates. Samples of the fruits from such crates had been sent to the Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru, for analysis, he said. As the research had proved that the consumption of mangoes ripened with calcium carbide would cause serious health problems like cancer, ulcer and loss of appetite, the department had earlier cautioned the traders against using the chemical. The Department of Horticulture had also organised training programmes for farmers and vendors focussing on natural methods of ripening mango. The owners of the two shops that were raided on Friday were told not to sell mangoes till the receipt of laboratory report. Appropriate action would be taken based on the laboratory test report, he said.
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