Tuoi Tre News [Vietnam]
5 August 2016
TUOI TRE NEWS
Rumors of fake Chinese mangos made from plastic are
throwing social media users in Vietnam into a collective paranoia.
The rumors sprouted from a video clip posted by a
Facebook account named D.T.N. appearing to show the seed from a small mango,
allegedly from China, being cut open to reveal what seems like a plastic
membrane. […]
According to many experts, the ‘plastic’ membrane
found in the clip might just be a natural part of a mango.
Dr. Tran Anh Tuan, a member of the Plant Physiology
Department of the Vietnam National University of Agriculture, said that many
plants have soft membranes to protect the seed.
Dr. Nguyen Van Hoan, a former lecturer in the Faculty
of Agronomy of the Vietnam National University of Agriculture, suggested that
some plants have an outer coat to protect the seed and a very soft inner
membrane that encapsulates the seed.
This soft membrane is perhaps the ‘plastic’ one people
claim to have found inside the stones. […]
