Wax on Apples

A+bunch+of+apples

A bunch of apples

By: Markus Merrill, Reporter

Do you know what is on your fruits? What could possibly be dangerous to your body? There is a natural wax on apples, which makes apples appear to have a white coating. The natural wax protects itself from fungi, shelf life, bruises, and more! Removing this coating reduces the apples lifespan, or shelf life in the market. After the fruits are picked, they need to be washed to remove pesticides, bacteria, and other harmful things that could affect the apple itself.

After the fruits are washed, the farmers then adds an artificial wax that is sprayed on the apples which serves many purposes. The wax protects the apple from bruising, fungi, bacteria, increase shelf life, prevents moisture loss, and includes a shiny appearance on the apples. The only that concern is that a chemical called, “Morpholine” which is used to keep the apples in an even consistency. Morpholine is fine alone, but when in contact with nitrates in your body, it produces chemicals called, “carcinogen” which promotes cancer. You can get nitrates in your body by eating some processed meat like bacon or jerky, or eating many greens. FDA, Canada, and other countries approves of morpholine on apples because the amount of morpholine is too low to prove a risk, but EU does not.