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AND A FEW NOTES
- Spicy or pungent foods (such as onions or hot peppers) are tested for QUALITY the same as any other.
- The refractometer is not truly a ripeness tester, although it is used in that sense by many Departments of Agriculture. For instance, many Departments allow cantaloupe to be picked once it tests 9 brix (this is what you normally find on salad bars). However, excellent cantaloupe is 16 brix or better.
- Produce CANNOT gain minerals (increase in QUALITY) after detachment from the mother plant or the soil.
- Ignore vendor's comments about produce somehow ripening into better quality. Particularly ignore vendor's signs reading SWEET. You now have the means, by using a refractometer, of determining true quality. You’ll never be fooled again by their cry of "Sweet!"
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