Natural Ripening of Fruits: What we do at Sanesa Yourganic and why it is no magic so you can do at home yourself too

When we started Sanesa in the summer of ’17, almost on a whim, it was because what we were coming across was fascinating. Our first two years were an intense period of new learning on a daily basis—on farming, organic farming, seeds, farmers, seasons, supply chains, customers, people, technology, and so on.

One of the key things that we learnt during the summer of ’18, when we sourced fruits from other organic farmers for the first time, was that it is so easy to let a fruit ripen on its own. All we need is patience, as it takes time—unlike fruits we want to consume ‘right now’. We also need some tolerance, as some fruits (and at times many) will go bad during natural ripening, especially in the early learning phase. We also need some curiosity to learn something new, as the ripening of fruits is largely dependent on temperature and humidity, and ranges vary across fruits. And of course, not all fruits ripen after harvesting—but most do.

Now, before we go into an intellectual discussion on natural ripening and other ripening methods, and finally land at climate change (emoji), only to give up in despair that nothing can be done and we are all doomed—and maybe it would be better to meet our doom on Mars, even if it means Elon Musk gets to make more money and perhaps invest in technology to live forever—let’s unbox natural ripening for you: what you need and how to do it yourself.

Here is the thing. All you need is a good cardboard box with some holes. If you don’t have one, place your order with us for a decent quantity of products and ask us to pack them in a box—you will get one box as well as a lot of other delightful stuff. Of course, you pay, and nothing is free—not until climate change hits and we are on a spacecraft to Mars. But yes, just a cardboard box is all you need. Some newspaper cuttings—or if you don’t like the potential absorption of newspaper ink in your naturally ripened fruits, brown paper cuttings, cloth cuttings, jute ropes, dry grass, etc.—there are many options to use as inner fillings.

Once you have your box and inner fillings, the only other thing you need is a fruit that is harvested not too raw, so that it has all the enzymes—or at least enough enzymes—to kickstart the ripening process. Put the fruit in, and make a couple of layers if you wish, with fillings acting as separators between layers. Close the top and place it in an area of your home that is warm but not in direct sunlight. Most kitchens have places like these. Ensure you check once a day initially, and you will start seeing some color changes and noticing some aroma—both increase every day until the fruit ripens. A ripe fruit usually gives off an aroma that tells your reptilian brain to just eat it (emoji), and that’s your sign. Some fruits are low on aroma, so ripeness is tested by gently pressing them. Ripe fruits are softer—that’s nature. In many cases, the market has conditioned you to eat raw fruits so much that you no longer like the taste and feel of the ripe versions of the same fruit.

Fully ripe fruits are nutritionally stronger, especially in two aspects. Micronutrients like antioxidants, flavonoids, and anthocyanins increase as a fruit ripens. For minerals like iron, potassium, magnesium, and calcium, absorption is much better from ripe fruits, as absorption blockers present in unripe fruit get metabolized during the ripening process. Vitamin C increases with ripening for most fruits, though there are exceptions like oranges and grapes, where vitamin C levels are higher in the semi-ripe stage.

What we follow at Sanesa Yourganic is essentially the same—just on a larger scale. In some cases, a bigger and sturdier box is used. We also receive supplies in bulk, so stacking multiple boxes next to each other aids in a slightly faster rate of natural ripening. However, the essence remains the same.

By Manu Digvijay Singh & Varun Goyal