Preserved in a 1 – 0 – 2 way, grapes stay fresh for half a year

Preserving “super toxic” grapes can keep fresh for half a year

Grapes are considered to be quite “fancy” fruits because they are not easy to preserve for a long time. In Afghanistan – where many areas have difficult living conditions, they have invented a traditional method that has been used for hundreds of years, helping to preserve grapes so that they can stay fresh for up to half a year.

A street vendor selling fresh grapes on the streets of Afghanistan

It’s an ancient method called Gangina. Not only grapes, they also bao manage the fruit They stay fresh for several months by “sealing” them in small sealed clay “containers”.

Proper storage of grapes in Gangina containers can last for half a year

According to local people, they will first choose fresh grapes. Then, they are put into small “containers” like two clay discs that are pressed tightly together and then sealed.

These “containers” will be left in the sun to dry and then placed in a cool place, out of direct sunlight. If stored properly, these boxes will keep the grapes picked in the fall fresh until next spring.

The seller of fresh grapes on the street.

“Initially we will remove the damaged grapes and put them in the gangina box. If we don’t remove the damaged grapes, they will damage all the other grapes in the box. That will be very laborious to preserve the grapes.” , Mr. Abdul Manan, a farmer said.

Gangina containers must be kept in a dark and airtight place. The fruit inside will stay fresh even better than in the fridge.

Vendors smash the outer box when a customer asks to buy grapes.

In winter or spring, when consumer demand for fruit increases, farmers like Manan bring boxes of Gangina with grapes inside to sell at a profit. Normally, each such storage box holds about 1 kg of fresh grapes.

“When the grapes are harvested in the fall, we will carefully select them to store them in Gangina boxes to preserve the grapes and sell them in the winter to spring. At that time, the grapes will be priced and the growers will make a profit.” said an Afghan farmer.

Afghanistan grows nearly 100 varieties of grapes. The country is also famous in the world for raisins production, once accounting for 10% of the global raisin market.

However, after nearly four decades of conflict and war, the raisin industry in Afghanistan has been hit hard. Many domestic producers are trying to find a way to revive the golden age of raisin production here.

According to Dan Viet