Banned or restricted substance
Is calcium carbide banned for ripening fruit in India?
Last checked 21 September 2026
Artificial ripening of fruit with calcium carbide, which releases acetylene gas, is prohibited in India under regulation 2.3.5 of the FSS (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011; ethylene gas ripening in approved chambers is permitted.
- Classification
- Prohibited (Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006)
- Decided by
- Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)
- Reference
- Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011, regulation 2.3.5; FSSAI advisory 2024
- Latest action
- 1 May 2024
- Last checked
- 21 September 2026
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Safe here, banned there: what India's food regulations actually say
Our team has checked this record against the published reports, last on 21 September 2026. The government order itself is not published online, or we have not found it yet, so we link the best public report. If you have the order, send it to us and we will link it instead.
Scope. A record here does not by itself mean a product or company is unsafe or banned today. Regulatory actions can apply to one batch, one formulation, one period or one state. Always check the linked government document for the current position, and tell us if something is out of date. How we label records.
Below: Blacklisted's explanationWe explain what has been reported. The report above is the best source we hold.
Key facts
- Legal basis
- Regulation 2.3.5, FSS (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011
- Why
- Industrial calcium carbide contains arsenic and phosphorus traces; acetylene exposure harms handlers; ripening is uneven
- Permitted alternative
- Ethylene gas up to 100 ppm in ripening chambers (FSSAI guidance)
- Enforcement
- Seasonal raids on mango and banana traders; FSSAI advisory to states in 2024
Calcium carbide is an industrial chemical that releases acetylene gas on contact with moisture. Acetylene mimics ethylene, the natural ripening hormone, so a sachet of carbide in a crate of green mangoes or bananas will turn them yellow within a day. The practice is cheap and widespread, and it is prohibited: regulation 2.3.5 of the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restrictions on Sales) Regulations, 2011 bars the sale of fruit artificially ripened with acetylene gas, commonly known as carbide gas.
The objection is threefold. Industrial-grade carbide carries traces of arsenic and phosphorus hydride; acetylene is hazardous to the workers handling it; and carbide ripening colours the skin without ripening the flesh, producing fruit that looks ready and tastes of nothing. FSSAI permits ethylene gas instead, applied at controlled concentrations in ripening chambers, and has issued guidance on that method.
Enforcement is seasonal. State food safety departments raid fruit markets ahead of the mango season and seize carbide sachets, and FSSAI issued an advisory in 2024 reminding traders and states of the prohibition. The regulation targets the practice and the trader; it creates no list of banned fruit.
What this means for you
Ask the fruit seller
Traders using ethylene chambers can say so. Carbide 'masala' packets among fruit are the classic sign of the banned method.
Wash and peel
FSSAI's advice for consumers who suspect carbide ripening is to wash fruit in running water and avoid the skin.
This is a record of official orders, not medical advice. Do not stop a prescribed medicine without asking your doctor or pharmacist.
Official sources and primary records
- News