催熟劑是香蕉產業鏈中不可缺少的環節，全世界都在廣泛使用。因成熟的香蕉軟熟易損，實際生產中都是採摘青果，以便於長途運輸後銷售。
等到銷售之前，青香蕉會被「催熟」。目前，通常會使用一種叫做「乙烯利」(Ethefon) 的液體產生乙烯，來催熟香蕉。乙烯是普遍存在於植物內的五大天然激素之一，乙烯利是一種人工合成的植物生長調節劑，催熟原理與天然乙烯相同，認為不超標使用是不會影響人體健康的。然而，乙烯利在世界範圍內被廣泛用作殺蟲劑。因此，無論是否安全，香蕉在超市出售前，水果有機會浸洗過催熟劑，消費者缺乏知情權下，建議香蕉雖然不吃皮，實在需要經過清洗程序才安全食用。
在瑞士，藍莓的最高殘留量相對較高，為每公斤 5 毫克。2011 年 1 月，西班牙辣椒因乙烯利含量遠高於限值而從德國超市召回。2014 年 7 月，瑞士禁止在番茄種植中使用番茄，原因是在前一年的常規種植中發現瑞士番茄中存在過量殘留物。
不過，在美國醫學期刊，一篇研究指出，乙烯利，一種有機磷，有潛在的肝毒性作用。在實驗大鼠中，發現體重顯著下降。肝細胞的有序排列被破壞並被充滿血液的正弦波所取代。在位點，肝細胞似乎退化了。科學家們報告說，經常食用人工成熟的水果可能會導致頭暈、虛弱、皮膚潰瘍以及與心臟和肝臟相關的疾病。
參考資料：
乙烯利有潛在的肝毒性作用嗎？(2018年1-2月)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5958565/
Why choose naturally ripened bananas and fruits
Ripening agents are an indispensable link in the banana industry chain and are widely used all over the world. Because ripe bananas are soft and fragile, green fruits are picked in actual production for sale after long-distance transportation.
Green bananas are “ripened" before being sold. Currently, ethylene is usually produced using a liquid called “Ethefon" to ripen bananas. Ethylene is one of the five natural hormones ubiquitous in plants. Ethephon is a synthetic plant growth regulator. The principle of ripening is the same as that of natural ethylene. However, ethephon is widely used as an insecticide worldwide. Therefore, no matter whether it is safe or not, before bananas are sold in supermarkets, the fruits have the opportunity to be soaked in ripening agents. Consumers lack the right to know. Although bananas do not need to eat the skin, they really need to go through the washing process before they are safe to eat.
In Switzerland, the MRL for blueberries is relatively high at 5 mg/kg. In January 2011, Spanish peppers were recalled from German supermarkets due to levels of ethephon well above the limit. In July 2014, Switzerland banned the use of tomatoes in tomato cultivation after excessive residues were found in Swiss tomatoes during routine cultivation the previous year.
However, in the American Journal of Medicine, a study noted that ethephon, an organophosphorus, has potential hepatotoxic effects. In experimental rats, a significant decrease in body weight was found. The orderly arrangement of liver cells is disrupted and replaced by blood-filled sine waves. At the site, hepatocytes appeared to be degenerated. Scientists report that regular consumption of artificially ripened fruit may lead to dizziness, weakness, skin ulcers, and heart- and liver-related diseases.
References:
Does ethephon have potential hepatotoxic effects? (January-February 2018)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5958565/
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