HONEY BEES-MOVING TOWARDS EXTINCTION?

Honey is much valued as a food material besides having many therapeutic qualities attributed to it. As it is a product extracted from Beehives where the bees process the syrupy material they suck out of many types of flowers, protecting these creatures from infection and other disease causing bugs is a prerequisite to ensure safety of honey produced by them. Honey was recently the focus of attention internationally after it was found that honey imported from China was heavily contaminated with antibiotics. Honeybees afflicted by infectious diseases are reported to be routinely treated with antibiotics and a part of this was found leached into the honey produced by these bees. Some countries even banned import of Chinese honey because of the wide prevalence such practices by beekeepers in China. In yet another instance of threat to honeybees is there is this report which speaks of a move by the EU to impose a ban on the popular pesticide Neonictinoids and is being welcomed widely because of the adverse impact these pesticides have on the bees. The Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) which is becoming a matter of concern in many countries is now being attributed to widespread use of neonicotinoids. Here is a take on this interesting development which if ends up in a real ban will give the honeybees a fresh lease of life.    

"There have been demonstrations in various EU cities, from London to Sofia, in favour of a ban. The companies that produce the pesticides reject the findings of the food safety agency investigation and have offered alternatives that they say will preserve bee populations. The April 29 vote was 15 in favour of the restrictions, eight against and four abstentions. Since the previous vote, after a series of protests by beekeepers, Bulgaria changed its stance from abstaining to voting for a ban. Tonio Borg, European Health and Consumer Commissioner, said: "Although a majority of member states now supports our proposal, the necessary qualified majority was not reached. The decision now lies with the Commission. Since our proposal is based on a number of risks to bee health identified by the European Food Safety Authority, the Commission will go ahead with its text in the coming weeks. "I pledge to do my utmost to ensure that our bees, which are so vital to our ecosystem and contribute over 22 billion euro annually to European agriculture, are protected," Borg said. The proposal restricts the use of three neonicotinoids (clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiametoxam) for seed treatment, soil application (granules) andfoliar treatment on bee attractive plants and cereals. In addition, the remaining authorised uses are available only to professionals.
Exceptions will be limited to the possibility to treat bee-attractive crops in greenhouses, in open-air fields only after flowering. The restrictions will apply from December 1 2013. The European Commission said that as soon as new information is available, and at the latest within two years, the Commission will review the conditions of approval of the three neonicotinoids to take into account relevant scientific and technical developments". 

So far honey as a healthy food suffered from antibiotics contamination, adulteration and Clostridium bottulinum poisoning and the new threat perception comes from the indiscriminate use of neonicotinoids on some crops. Will honeybees will end up in the category natural species that face extinction due to man's reckless action to outsmart all other species on this earth for his selfish goals? It is sad that when new pesticides are created, their impact on the nature is largely ignored and the result is devastation that is being witnessed as in the case of neonicotinoids vis-a-vis honeybees. Even now it is not too late for the world to take effective action to do whatever is possible to protect honeybees these tiny creatures have an important role in preserving the plant kingdom. Without honeybees 80% of the plants will disappear from the face of this earth as they have an important role in producing seeds through pollination of flowers and these seeds propagate the various species on a perpetual basis.  

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

ARTIFICIAL RIPENING OF MANGO-A FRAUD THAT NEEDS TO BE CURBED

A recent report from Tamilnadu revealed a shocking practice being perpetrated by the Mango traders there using dangerous pesticides for ripening the fruit! This is the first time one hears about use of pesticides for fruit ripening and if it is true this must be based on "innovation" by the unscrupulous traders for making a fast buck. From where they got this knowledge is still a mystery and horticulture scientists must probe this development further to bring out the dangers inherent in such devious practices. It is known that acetylene generated using Calcium Carbide chemical and moisture is widely practiced all over the country basically for giving a highly attractive (tempting?) red color to Mango though the consumer realizes the mistake only after cutting open the fruit and eating! Though this is illegal, due to lax vigilance by safety authorities in every state, this despicable practice goes on unchecked. The new development of using life threatening pesticides as ripening agents if true has far reaching implications on the well being of consumers. Here is a take on this new revelations.   

 Food safety officials, in Erode, on Friday seized three tonnes of artificially ripened mangoes sprayed with organophosphate based insecticide, an artificial ripening agent. The compound is toxic and is part of the same chemical family of compounds that are found in various harmful pesticides and even nerve gas agents. "Based on a tip off, we raided the shops and confiscated the artificially ripened mangoes. They were sprayed with pesticide for quick ripening which is being widely used as a substitute for calcium carbide these days," said G Rameshkumar, designated officer, Food Safety and Drug Administration Department, Erode. The artificially ripened mangoes were seized from three fruit warehouses in Nethaji whole sale fruit market in Erode. Officials claimed the traders were spraying pesticide on the mangoes to ensure the entire bunch becomes ripe within five to six days. They acknowledged it difficult to identify fruits ripened by spraying the pesticide which is available in the open market at Rs 1200 per litre. "These artificially ripened fruits have a pink tinge on their outer skin but that cannot be the only factor to confirm the presence of the toxic artificial ripening agent," Rameshkumar added.

While in many developing countries traders indulge in such malpractices, look at the consumer response to these prevalent activities of the trade. Most consumers do not bother to check the quality of mango and go for cheap ones attracted by the appearance and price. Lessons are never learned and memories are short which is exploited by vendors to the hilt. The tendency to patronize street vendors is very common in India as consumers have the misconception that they can get a better bargain but these vendors invariably have weighing contraptions "doctored" to deliver 20% to 40% less than what is offered! Fruit buying is an ability very few consumers have and in many cases, after paying exorbitant prices, they realize that what they bought was not mature or rotten inside or have othr concealed defects forcing them to throw them away in disgust. This is where the organized retailers and the government sponsored marketing organizations can play a constructive role as they have a reputation to guard. It is time that a universally accepted standard branding is introduced that will guarantee the quality of fruits available in the market as that exists in the US. Probably National Horticulture Board must address this issue with imaginative and visionary foresight.  

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com