Bursting open like literal land mines, China’s watermelons are under severe strain with their current wet weather and the overdose of growth chemicals they have been covering them in. China has stunned us all with their expectations of bigger, more profitable fruit by spraying their crops with a growth accelerator known as forchlorfenuron.

Around 20 farmers situated around Danyang city in Jiangsu lost up to 115 acres of watermelons due to this crisis. According to the U.S. EPA – “Forchlorfenuron is a cytokin which improves fruit size, fruit set, cluster weight and cold storage in grapes in kiwifruits.”

Professor Wang Liangju with the College of Horticulture at Nanjing Agricultural University believes that these problems occurred as they were improperly used.

He disclosed to The Associated Press that the chemicals were used too late into the season, causing bolting of the fruits. He also claimed that the variety of fruit grown could be the cause, stating that a thin skinned variety was grown which has actually been nicknamed the “exploding melon”, known for splitting.

Sadly, Chinese regulations don’t forbid the use of drugs on their crops, which is also allowed in the U.S. on grapes and kiwi fruit. The real issue seems to arise when farmers in China abuse both legal and illegal chemicals in their crop production, along with misusing pesticides and fertilizers.

The only way to be safe from all these chemically induced crops is to buy locally or even better, grow your own.

Source: David Wolfe