It didn’t take long for an ominous warning to spread: “Do not eat clementines; they are infested with bugs.”
The warning was posted on social media and had many people wondering whether the requirement to check for bugs in many fruits and vegetables meant that “all” fruits and vegetables now had to be checked with the same kind of thoroughness as many common vegetables are.
Rabbis and many ordinary kosher observing people are trained in bug-checking and cleaning. Rabbis reached by KosherToday agreed that while insect infestation was extremely common nowadays, it was not a universal requirement.
Rabbi David Bistricer, a Rabbinic Coordinator at the OU, wrote in a recent edition The Daf Hakashrus of the OU that only fruits, vegetables and berries that have “a minimum rate of infestation of 10%” must be checked.
The rabbi also said that “magnification is not required when checking” but “insects that cannot be properly identified whatsoever unless magnification is used, are permitted.”
One rabbi told Kosher Today that “insect scares” are not uncommon. He recalled a similar scare for strawberries, which he said led to a recommendation to cut off the tops and rinsing the strawberries well.
Some of the rabbis urged washing all fruits and vegetables even those that are not suspect for insects.
Seems hardly anyone is aware of — I only noticed it last spring, and ONLY after reading excellent book on subject “Bedikas HaMazon” (got it on Kingston Avenue):
Blueberries have lately been infested with scales (which appear to the uneducated consumer as harmless small specs or tiny bubbles stuck to the outside of the fruit).
I watched the you tube video. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Instead of reading the article I saw the live larva – yuck! yuck! yuck!
You bring an “Article in respected scientific journal” to make a general claim that it “Concludes that clementines ARE infested with eggs and larva of two tephritid fruit fly. ” This is quite puzzling because if you actually take the time to read it, NOWHERE IN THAT ARTICLE does it make such a statement. What it does say is, that when they put clementines in a cage with those fruit flies, they later found them to be infested. And they recommend prevention measures to avoid infestation in places that are populated by those flies, such as refrigeration. You also bring… Read more »
I am neither a rabbi or a kashrut authority but I am astounded when these “authorities” issue statements about matters that are contrary to experts in the fields. Bug infestations are not “just” a rabbinical and kashrut problem. It has been studied and the EXPERTS in those fields concluded that clementines ARE infested. I lose respect for rabbis who are at most amateurs on this issue, yet state opinions on matters that they really know nothing about.
Article in respected scientific journal (this is NOT “social media”):
International Journal of Insect Science 2015:7 1-9
“Assessment of Navel Oranges, Clementine Tangerines, and Rutaceous Fruits as Hosts of Bactrocera cucurbitae and Bactrocera latifrons (Diptera: Tephritidae)”
Concludes that clementines ARE infested with eggs and larva of two tephritid fruit fly.
The article is available on-line.
Clementine Imports Curbed After Medfly Larvae Found
…The U.S. Department of Agriculture Thursday suspended indefinitely imports of clementines from Spain after live Mediterranean fruit fly larvae were found in Spanish clementines in Louisiana, Maryland and North Carolina. Distribution and sales of the fruit are banned in 18 states (Connecticut is not among them) and Puerto Rico.
December 08, 2001|By LINDA GIUCA; Courant Food Editor
For those who want to SEE the insects in clementines, (no, there aren’t “microscopic” at all):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_RXeVGNIws