A mother has shocked thousands by uncovering the “hidden meaning” behind numbers on Australian product labels.
Clara, a British expat living in Australia, revealed that the numbers printed on the stickers indicate exactly how the fruits and vegetables were grown.
“I was 18 today when my mom told me that all the fruits that have little stickers on them have a number on them and the numbers mean something,” she said in a video.
Clara showed the stickers of a lemon and a kiwi and said that the codes, called price lookup numbers (PLU), inform about the use of pesticides in the crop.
“If it’s a four-digit number and it starts with a four, that means the food is grown (conventionally)… and it probably has pesticides in the growing process,” he said.
‘If it is organic it will have a five-digit code that starts with the number nine, this code means that it has not been genetically modified and has not had pesticides.’
A five-digit code starting with eight means it has been genetically modified (GMO) to resist pests and pesticides may have been used in its production.
The British mother added that genetically modified fruits and vegetables also have pesticides “built into” their genetic material.
Clara, a British expat living in Australia, revealed that the numbers printed on labels indicate exactly how the fruits and vegetables were grown.
While Clara buys organic foods when she can, she said when she can’t she simply soaks produce in baking soda to remove any pesticide residue.
One woman admitted she was shocked by the little-known information.
“Wow! I can’t wait to go buy some fruit and vegetables,” she said.
—The truth is that I do too —Clara replied.
This comes after Woolworths launched a revolutionary new set of avocado features that make shoppers’ lives easier and reduce waste.
The supermarket giant has introduced ‘Eat Now’ and ‘Eat Later’ labels, which allow shoppers to tell at a glance how ripe an avocado is without having to squeeze it.
“We understand the disappointment of cutting into an unripe avocado,” a Woolworths spokesperson recently told FEMAIL.
‘Customers will now be able to buy their avocados with confidence with the introduction of Eat Now labels, which indicate the perfect ripeness of the day.’