I was in my domestic goddess avatar and out shopping for fruits, specifically for mangoes. The mangoes seemed pretty small so I asked the vendor for larger sized mangoes. Out came the mangoes, large, golden with a best quality sticker and boxes tagged “meant for export”.
It’s strange that for the first time it piqued me that we as a nation, are used to seeing our best produce being exported, while we are left with the 2nd grade stuff. Don’t we deserve better if not the best? Of course, the rationalists will argue that it is simple economics really; the prize goes to the highest bidder. I just think it’s sad that our best goes to the west and their excess and often genetically modified / past expiry date products find their way to us.
Project BT Brinjal was abandoned, but maybe the fruits and vegetables currently being sold in our markets are modified and god knows what the side effects will be – who is looking out for us, the FDA hopefully?
Having said that I also take part of the blame in settling for inferior quality stuff. Aren’t we as a community always looking for bargains? If you want cheap, you have to be ready for inferior quality stuff. I keep telling myself, buy 1 good product instead of 10 cheap bargain finds. Slowly but surely I hope that I will get there.
So coming back to the point. We deserve better and need to demand it – as simple as that. Or is it?
My take... This 'export' sticker means better quality is ingrained in us so much that sometimes the guy selling you the fruit can take undue advantage of it - He knows you will pay more for anything that has export written on it :)
ReplyDeleteG - ur right actually. We re suckers for export maal!
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