Eating fresh fruit

[biggs682]

Only been a week but good so far. It's partly for health but I am also an animal lover and totally shocked myself watching a film called Dominion. It was in Australia rather than UK, but it was totally sickening. I was wanting to improve my diet anyway and that just gave me the push.

Well a week is a lot longer than I could do, but health reasons is a good reason to keep going.

Yes we don't always treat our food sources correctly and having been in a couple of slaughter houses a few years ago I can understand that reason.

So keep up with it and keep us posted please.

 

[presta]

Anyone been listening to Mark Miodownik's new series 'Toxic' on Radio 4?

The first episode was about PFAS 'forever' chemicals, and if you thought they were only used in non-stick frying pans, think again. They're in crop sprays, food, hay fever inhalers, dishwasher tablets, waterproof coatings for paper straws & cups, catheters, food containers, cosmetics, stain resistant coatings on clothes and furniture, fire extinguisher foam, batteries, and aircon coolants. They're also contaminating rain and the water supply.

 

[simongt]

It’s frightening how much chemicals we both digest and come into contact with on a daily basis.

And unfortunately, too many folk neither know nor care.

 

[lazybloke]

What was the taste like? It looks a bit like a cross between a grapefruit and an orange?

I've very recently gone vegan so eating a lot more fruit and veg so open to trying some new things.

My daughter loves pomelos; we get her three a week from Lidl. The season seems to start late Nov or early Dec and usually ends in spring, so not sure if they're still available now.

Not as sour/acidic as grapefruit, a much more subtle flavour. They take a lot of peeling to get rid of all the pith!

 

[Pat "5mph"]

We read a red pomelo given to us a couple of days ago so just had half of it for breakfast.

I was given one too, a couple of weeks ago!

What was the taste like? It looks a bit like a cross between a grapefruit and an orange?

Like a grapefruit, much less tart. Mine was drier inside than a standard citrus fruit, maybe because it was slightly past its best - I got it given at one of those "fair share" shops, where you get to buy supermarket left overs very cheap.
Or if nobody wants the stuff even for cheap, they give you it for free

Citrus fruit for the zest used in cooking, marmalade making or for the hospitality sector (lemon, limes etc) are all.available unwaxed, even from supermarkets but you have to look for it and is undoubtedly harder to find .

Unwaxed lemons and limes are readily available in most supermarkets, but they are still sprayed with pesticides, the label say so, states with ones. Usually it's 3 different kind of pesticides, on the same fruits!

If youre concerned by the particular chemicals, the supermarket labelling MUST state which ones are used, at least then you can fo some research.
But that begs thee question, if you buy from a market say...its not labelled so you can't be

I'm concerned about all the chemicals used on citrus fruits, because I want to use their zest in my baking.
Washing the skins does not get rid of the pesticides completely.
Stands to reason from a grower's point of view (me lol): if, on a commercial farm, you have to reapply pesticides every time it rains this would be costly and labour consuming.

Just been googling, and it sounds like washing in diluted baking soda removes most, but not all pesticide residue?

Incorrect lol
Baking soda, or anything that makes the water you wash in fizzy/acidic (lemon juice) will get wee beasties out of hiding, but not cleanse off chemicals.
I follow a few food techs/chefs in commercial settings, apparently running your fruit and veg under running cold water for at least 30 seconds removes most (but not all) residues of pesticides.
For demographics at higher risk (pregnant, elderly, etc.) there are specific catering disinfectant products you should wash your fruit and veg with.
I guess something like sterilizing tablets.
I would leave some very interesting food safety links for your perusal, but they are in Italian!

 

[presta]

Washing the skins does not get rid of the pesticides completely.

The reason they put PFAS in pesticides is so that they won't wash off easily.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

Stands to reason from a grower's point of view (me lol): if, on a commercial farm, you have to reapply pesticides every time it rains this would be costly and labour consuming.

The reason they put PFAS in pesticides is so that they won't wash off easily.

Indeed, that's what I figured

 

[Mo1959]

I was given one too, a couple of weeks ago!

Like a grapefruit, much less tart. Mine was drier inside than a standard citrus fruit, maybe because it was slightly past its best - I got it given at one of those "fair share" shops, where you get to buy supermarket left overs very cheap.
Or if nobody wants the stuff even for cheap, they give you it for free

Unwaxed lemons and limes are readily available in most supermarkets, but they are still sprayed with pesticides, the label say so, states with ones. Usually it's 3 different kind of pesticides, on the same fruits!

I'm concerned about all the chemicals used on citrus fruits, because I want to use their zest in my baking.
Washing the skins does not get rid of the pesticides completely.
Stands to reason from a grower's point of view (me lol): if, on a commercial farm, you have to reapply pesticides every time it rains this would be costly and labour consuming.

Incorrect lol
Baking soda, or anything that makes the water you wash in fizzy/acidic (lemon juice) will get wee beasties out of hiding, but not cleanse off chemicals.
I follow a few food techs/chefs in commercial settings, apparently running your fruit and veg under running cold water for at least 30 seconds removes most (but not all) residues of pesticides.
For demographics at higher risk (pregnant, elderly, etc.) there are specific catering disinfectant products you should wash your fruit and veg with.
I guess something like sterilizing tablets.
I would leave some very interesting food safety links for your perusal, but they are in Italian!

Wonder if something like this is any good? Probably as well just with running water and a good scrub?

 

[SteveH80]

* I don't eat fruit since an incident on a bus during a school trip...

Eh? What? You can't just drop a statement like that without some kind of explanation

 

[Pat "5mph"]

Wonder if something like this is any good? Probably as well just with running water and a good scrub?

I wonder what the ingredients of this product are!
You are probably right @Mo1959 - more chemicals, at a price of course, to get rid of chemicals