Exploding Chinese Watermelons And Forchlorfenuron

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At the beginning of April, in eastern China, farmers watched as watermelons exploded in the field.   The exploding watermelons evidently resulted from the the use of a chemical growth accelerator called forchlorfenuron  which the farmers had used in an effort to make their melons grow bigger, faster.  The watermelons weren’t the only things that blew up— so did the farmers profits, and maybe in the long run, that is not a bad thing.  Let’s take another look at chemical growth enhancers and foreign food.

You may not be surprised to hear about toxic food mishaps from China, where regulation on everything but freedom of speech seems to be lax,  but you might be surprised to know, in the wake of  the Chinese watermelon debacle, Forchlorfenuron  is legal in the United States as a chemical growth enhancer for farm produce.

According to the EPA pesticide fact sheet, forchlorfenuron is not necessarily harmless either.Side effects revealed in animal studies included:

• Increased incidence of alopecia (hair loss)
• Decreased birth weight
• Increased pup mortality
• Decreased litter sizes

Oh yes, and did I also mention that the EPA calls the substance  “moderately toxic to freshwater fish on an acute basis.”

I got the inforation above from Dr. Mercola’s excellent article on the subject.  Dr. Mercola also has some very good advice on how to spot produce that has been subjected to chemical growth enhancers. To wit:

One of the tell-tale signs of a fruit or vegetable that hasn’t been grown by entirely natural means is their inherent lack of flavor. It may look plump and ripe, but once you bite into it, it’s anything but a flavor sensation. This is because while growth enhancers like forchlorfenuron stimulate cell division, making the fruit grow faster, it also drains it of flavor. This is actually rather logical, if you think about it. Flavor is a sign of ripeness, which only comes with time. Many unripe fruits and vegetables are virtually tasteless.

It all just goes to show you that you can’t hurry mother nature and good food takes time. The exploding Chinese watermelons underscore the wisdom of knowing where your food comes from and buying local  or even growing your own whenever possible.