Fruits like bananas are often picked and shipped before being mature. The ethylene treatment, (ethylene is the natural ripening hormone), enables to ripen them just before being sold.
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When the fruits have to be shipped over a long distance, they have to be picked green in order to avoid getting rotten. However, they have to be ripened before being sold. This step can be achieved and speeds up by a treatment with a non flammable mix of nitrogen and ethylene (ALIGAL™ 101), allowing a high storage flexibility by ripening them on demand.
The main fruits are bananas, and also pears, avocado and kiwis. The treatment lasts a few hours.