I recently stumbled across an article on Treehugger.com* about the exploding watermelons in Jiangsu, China due to the overuse of growth hormones.
WHAT?? 什么?? 뭐?? những gì??
Trust me, exploding fruit bombs is not a normal occurrence in China. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same about the use of pesticides on most of the produce here.
As you may know, one of China’s biggest concerns is not having enough food to feed their over 1 billion citizens. Along with the pressures from China’s current economic progress, the Chinese are willing to do whatever it takes to bring in more profit. Even if it means using chemicals to enhance the growth of their crops.
Having lived in Beijing for the past year, I’ve experienced first hand the effects of living with no consumer confidence. Let me tell you, it’s not a great feeling not knowing what’s safe and unsafe to eat. On many occasions, I’ve found myself lurched over the toilet, and even in the hospital at one point because I didn’t wash the vegetables “properly”, whatever that means. I’ve been told by several people not to trust the big corporations, while at the same time, not to shop at the small markets selling fruits, vegetables and eggs.
So what am I suppose to eat if I can’t go to the grocery stores or local markets without the risk of dying from food poisoning? That’s a question I’m still trying to answer myself, which is a problem because this girl’s gotta eat!
So pushing aside the horrible memories on my bathroom floor, the only real solution for me is to risk my health and only hope the groceries I buy has not been drenched in chemicals. There’s been times when my bananas and tomatoes tastes like medicine (aka pesticides/growth hormones) and I’ve had to throw them out, but honestly, what can you do when you’re living here for one year?
My conclusion is this. If the rest of the population is still alive, I should be fine too. Hopefully….
*Treehugger.com is an up-to-minute blog dedicated to bringing sustainability to the world through green news.
ew ew ew. pesticides for breakfast is not okay! did you see my IP post today about cacao fruit? Your post made me feel even more grateful that there are places in the world where the only thing on the fruit trees is jungle raindrops. nom nom.
wash those veggies, you have to stay healthy until I get there
I say we start a “green” revolution in China!
that is crazy to think about, exploding watermelons, holy crap. this post reminds me a lot of India, and how there is a laundry list of supposed “do not eats.” its amazing what we take for granted living in the US, and how we can just go to the store at the drop of a hat and not worry about a thing. very interesting to get this perspective of your time in the homeland. keep writing, i enjoy reading!
Wow. That’s pretty intense. Unfortunately the pressure on food levels will only increase as the world’s population keeps booming, and our only solution seems to be either a) it more of it before it’s all gone i.e. fish stocks or b) spray growth hormones until it explodes i.e. watermelons.
It may not be practical, but perhaps think about having your own veggie patch? Good luck with Beijing!
China has a long way to go in providing safe, chemical-free produce for the Chinese people. Having my own veggie patch would have made it so much easier for me to maintain a regular diet while I was there. A lot of families in rural parts of China do have their own vegetable gardens, but the cities leave no room for residents to do the same