Is That Juicy Pineapple Contaminated

Many Australians would have enjoyed a visit to "The Big Pineapple" in Woombye Queensland. This amazing structure was opened in August 1971 and is situated on a 23 hectare pineapple farm on the Bruce Highway, a model tourist attraction in a model area. The Aussie Pinepple however is not alone. There is another "Big Pineapple" in Bathurst, South Africa which stands at 16.7m high. Moving through the door of this monument to the South African pineapple industry plantations beyond is where our story of pineapple contamination begins.

South Africa produces 2.7 million cartons of canned pineapple per year and exports 2.4 million. Zinc sulphate is used extensively in the agricultural regions of South Africa for a wide variety of crops destined for the market place, both locally and internationally. In 2007, IOL, South African news, reported finding high levels of the toxic heavy metal cadmium in their pineapple crops after farmers unknowingly used zinc sulphate fertiliser contaminated with this trace element. Traces of arsenic and lead were also found in fertiliser samples on further testing.

Following the discovery of high levels of heavy metals in the fertilizer, while IOL reported that nobody actually died due to the contamination, it was the farmers who suffered the most. They endured huge financial losses and were outraged that their department of agriculture would allow the importation of contaminated fertiliser from China. Some farmers were forced to leave their crops to simply rot. Legal action was eventually taken against the fertiliser suppliers and representatives of the industry were required to travel all over the world to explain the crisis and what was being done to ensure that their lucrative international markets were not lost.

It is unclear if any of the contaminated canned pineapple pallets reached the shores of Australia, although one would hope that the strict Australian quarantine laws would go some way to protect us. Consumers of canned pineapple and other goods, however, while facing the unknown possibility of heavy metals, pesticides and herbicides lurking in the produce, are also faced with another dilemma, the possibility that lead may be leaching into the product from the can itself. Consumers will occasionally find an imported can that has been lead soldered instead of welded where leaching is possible. You can tell if a can is soldered or welded by looking at the seam. Only buy canned food where the can has a welded flat seam which is thin and dark with a well defined line along the joint.

This article goes some way to demonstrate that we are, on a daily basis, bombarded with heavy metals, toxins, herbicides and pesticides from an infinite number of unidentifiable sources. While legislation tries to protect us, it is impossible to avoid some form of contamination, just by virtue of living on the planet.

In his book "Invisible Killers", Dr Rik Deitsch discusses the toxins that are found in our air, water, home and food. From the air, there is acid rain, global warming, ozone depletion and a good chance we are inhaling chlorofluorocarbons, asbestos, carbon monoxide, envrionmental tobacco smoke, lead and mercury to name a few. Our water may contain e.coli, giardia, chlorine dioxide, lead, arsenic and fluoride. At home you are faced with toxins that come inside on your shoes or you may find mercury and dioxines in your refrigerator. There may be lead in the paint on your walls, mold in your bathroom and arsenic on your deck or outdoor swing set. In terms of your food, there will most likely be pesticides and herbicides on your fruit and vegetables, not to mention the germs from all the hands that touched and rejected the produce you chose at the supermarket. Dr Deitsch also lists foods with naturally occurring toxins which should be eaten in moderation and suggests that bacteri! al food poisoning is of great concern to our health and well being.

Almost every thing we do in life exposes us to some form of toxins and heavy metals which lead to debilitating health problems ranging in severity from mild to life threatening. The humble pineapple is no exception. We are however, not helpless in this situation. There are clearly many things we can do to be proactive in protecting ourselves from dangerous heavy metals and toxins in our environment. Most importantly, regularly wash your hands and daily detoxify your body. It is critical in today's world to keep our bodies as toxin free as possible and now that we have a safe, scientifically proven product that is easy to use, we can be proactive in regaining and maintaining our health thus reducing the risk of becoming seriously ill. You can risk eating canned pineapple from South Africa when you take a daily shower on the inside.