FSSAI to mull over use of ethylene gas in ripening fruits

The Dollar Business Bureau

To mull over use of ethylene gas in the ripening of fruits and vegetables, the food safety regulator FSSAI has invited comments from public to make amendments.

The statement said that fruit can be ripened artificially with the help of ethylene gas at a concentration of 100 ppm depending upon the nature of the crop.

Ethylene can quicken the process of ripening of climatic fruits even after they are being picked from the plant. It is commonly used in bananas, when they are picked raw but ripened with the help of the gas after shipment.

Also, FSSAI in a separate notification spoke about the permissible limit of heavy metals in food products and has issued regulations of draft quality fixing the limit of foreign matter at a weight of maximum of 3% in the import of pulses.

Foreign matters here refer to anything apart from food grains. They include inorganic materials like stone, metallic pieces, sand, and organic matter like husk, weed seed, straws, and other inedible grains.

Foreign matter presence in the food is considered to be adulteration and these matters are not fit for human consumption.