no akees for you!

i just came across these great examples of products that are banned in the us. the very short articles go into little detail on the philosophy behind banning products, but strike a surprisingly anti-ban tone. anyway, the galleries are interesting, if not a bit frustrating. for example, who knew what akees were, or why they were banned? according to the gallery:

It causes Jamaican vomiting sickness, which affects the central nervous system and is characterized by convulsions -- not a pleasant way to die

it's not clear why are they banned just because they're poisonous. buckeyes are poisonous, and they're ohio's state tree, for pete's sake. the gallery notes that akees, as well as having a "texture like scrambled eggs or brains," are not poisonous when ripe, making the ban even more peculiar.

courtesy of uncle sam google, the fda alert:

the possibility that green or over-ripe fruits or seeds could get into the cans during commercial canning, or be consumed when eating the fresh fruit leads CFSAN to conclude that all shipments of ackees, ***EXCEPT from those firms identified in the Attachment to this alert, ***should be detained without physical examination. ***The processors listed in the Attachment have food safety controls in place to ensure that only properly ripened ackees, without seeds, membrane, or outer rind, are used for canning.***

from this we learn that the ban is not complete, as was hinted at in the gallery's article. the ban actually applies to private individuals and all firms except a select few - six, to be exact, as of the publication of this document.

Labels: political