VietNamNet Bridge – Chemicals used to ripen and preserve fruit are rampantly used in Vietnam but the Plant Protection Agency confirms that it has not licensed any chemical of this kind.

Ms. Pham Thi Vuong, acting head of the Plant Protection Institute said: "I used to buy Chinese apples and oranges, which were not rotten after a month so I dared not to eat them."

She said that many countries in the world use fruit preservatives but they still preserve fruit in the cold environment, with the temperature suitable to each fruit.

"I don’t know about the fruit maintenance techniques of China but if they are safe, we should also learn from them," she said.

"Why people are afraid of ghosts is that they do not know what ghosts are? We have to check to know what chemicals they (China) use to preserve fruit, if they are safe or not; if not we have to prevent it," said Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat.

Phat recently mentioned the use of chemicals to preserve and ripen fruit in a meeting of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD). "I’ve heard a lot about the use of chemicals as fruit preservatives or ripening. Now they purchase the whole fruit gardens and they do not wait until fruit are ripe to harvest. They pluck both ripe and green fruit and use chemicals to ripen fruit in bulk. So how we have to control this?” Phat asked.

Phat said the relevant agencies have to control not only the imported fruits but also local fruits because local traders also use chemicals.

Collecting sampling apples and pomegranates at the Lao Cai border gate for safety inspection.

Mr. Nguyen Xuan Hong, Head of the Plant Protection Agency, said that fruit exporting countries do not export ripe fruits because this is a difficult phase for preservation and the fruit quality can decline rapidly. For the fruit like banana, sapodilla, durian, jackfruit ... they are usually plucked when they are still green (nearly ripe) and ripened by safe chemicals or by incense and calcium carbide in Vietnam.

According to Hong, in the nature, the preservatives are safe because their origins are floral hormones, organic acids ... The task of these substances is to limit "breathing," keep the fruit longer against rot.

"The Fuzi red apples sold in Vietnam are not only imported from China but also from the U.S., New Zealand and Australia. I guarantee that the apples from the later countries can even be kept for longer time than China's apple," Hong said.

Illegal

While consumers worry about the safety of fruit, the authorities said that they have not licensed any companies to trade and use fruit preservatives and chemicals to ripen fruit in Vietnam. It means that the current chemicals used as fruit preservatives and fruit ripening stimulants are illegal.

According to the Plant Protection Agency, two businesses are looking for permission to bring safe fruit preservatives into Vietnam. The chemicals are being tested and the license may be granted in late 2013.

The agency said that in the world the only known chemical to ripen fruit is ethylene. Recently, in the south, a number of preservatives are imported from China. These chemicals were tested and they turned out to be Ethephon 28 percent. This substance can create ethylene and it is a floral hormone to ripen fruit. This substance is used in organic agriculture and it is safe.

Ethephon is used in the EU, the USA and Japan but in Vietnam this substance has not been commercially registered by any firm. Therefore, when this substance is detected in Vietnam, it is still considered illegal.

Phuong Thao