Fruits merchants cry foul

The campaign against the use of toxic substances to artificially ripen fruits, including mangoes, is part of a conspiracy to stunt the growth of fruits sale by creating a fear psychosis in consumers, the All Kerala Fruit Merchants Association has alleged.

Speaking at a press meet here on Monday, the association office-bearers, who maintained that the people’s fear was completely misplaced, said their members were selling fruits to customers only in complete adherence to all the food safety laws existing in the State.

Loss

State president of the association P. Hamza, who spoke on the occasion, said that the ‘smear’ campaign had cost them around 25 per cent of their annual sale compared to that of last year.

The association members also said that consumers were welcome to take the issue to the Food Safety Commissioner if any such cases were reported from any part of the State.