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Low-Energy Laser Etching May Replace Fruit Labels

MikeChino writes "How many times have you bit into a piece of fruit only to find that you're also chomping on a sticker label? The small sticky labels have long been the bane of waste-conscious fruit and vegetable eaters, but that might all change thanks to new technology that uses a low-energy carbon dioxide laser beam to etch information directly onto produce. No more peeling those annoying labels! So far the technology is being used on a number of fruits and vegetables in New Zealand, Australia, and Pacific Rim countries, and it's currently going through the final stages of review by the FDA. Once the technology is approved in the US, researchers from the University of Florida and the USDA Agricultural Research Service hope that it will be used in Florida's massive grapefruit industry."

32 of 475 comments (clear)

  1. Lecture Fruit! by happy_place · · Score: 5, Funny

    I can't wait til they're required by law to give us all the nutritional information of every piece of fruit, down to the calorie count and the chemical breakdown. Perhaps government will put missing persons reports on them, or government mandated reminders of what it means to be a good citizen! So many useful applications!

    --
    http://www.beanleafpress.com
    1. Re:Lecture Fruit! by Scutter · · Score: 4, Funny

      No, they'll just etch "This unit not labeled for individual sale" on each one and make you buy them by the bag instead.

      --

      "Tell me doctor, with all of your defenses, are there any provisions for an attack by killer bees?"
    2. Re:Lecture Fruit! by GaryOlson · · Score: 4, Funny
      Thus creating a gray market for fruit.

      Hey buddy, wanna buy a hit of label free grapefruit? Highest quality buzz of Vitamin C anywhere!

      --
      Every mans' island needs an ocean; choose your ocean carefully.
    3. Re:Lecture Fruit! by jo42 · · Score: 4, Funny

      fertilizing with human manure illegal

      Shouldn't be. Human manure, especially that from politicians and lawyers, is some of the finest crap on the planet.

    4. Re:Lecture Fruit! by Anonymusing · · Score: 4, Funny

      Even better, you will soon be able to custom-engrave your fruit. Popular choices:

      • Marry me!
      • Eat me!
      • I promise there are no razor blades in this apple!

      etc.

      --
      Liberal? Conservative? Compare perspectives at Left-Right
    5. Re:Lecture Fruit! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      "This Fruit Intentionally Left Blank"

    6. Re:Lecture Fruit! by Yvan256 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Great, now Apple will have to sell their MacBooks in packs of two.

    7. Re:Lecture Fruit! by Verdatum · · Score: 2, Funny

      And I'll start selling them by the slice...'cause that's just how I roll.

    8. Re:Lecture Fruit! by knappe+duivel · · Score: 2, Funny

      Grapefruit interacts with many drugs - it can make many drugs way more effective than expected.

      Please elaborate. Please!

    9. Re:Lecture Fruit! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      I totally read your post in a Jamaican accent

  2. Boon! by aerthling · · Score: 4, Funny

    This is particularly good news for me, because I can only eat foods that have been etched with a laser. Goodbye scurvy!

  3. Corporate advertising. by Dan541 · · Score: 4, Funny

    "This Apple brought to you by Apple"

    --
    An SQL query goes to a bar, walks up to a table and asks, "Mind if I join you?"
    1. Re:Corporate advertising. by Darth_brooks · · Score: 4, Funny

      That's nothing. If Apple starts making laser etched fruit trendy, soon they'll have a whole produce division! Couple that with genetic modification and one day I'll be able to compare Apple's Oranges to Orange Apples and.....oh no, I've gone cross-eyed....

      --
      There are some people that if they don't know, you can't tell 'em.
    2. Re:Corporate advertising. by LtGordon · · Score: 4, Funny

      Apple is currently working on technology to inscribe a EULA on the inside of the peel.

  4. Finally. by NoPantsJim · · Score: 4, Funny

    Thank god we've finally gotten to the bottom of that whole fruit label thing. Maybe now we can get around to tackling cancer.

    1. Re:Finally. by maxume · · Score: 3, Funny

      You're the one not wearing any pants.

      --
      Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
  5. Re:What does this do, chemically? by TimHunter · · Score: 5, Funny

    Hmmm...You're right, we can't trust the FDA. We should rely on the geniuses of the Slashdot community instead. The ones who can read the summary and immediately come up with 10 or a dozen weaknesses that the professionals who've been thinking about the problems for years have somehow overlooked.

    We should set up a vote. You know, take the top 10 highest-modded questions or something.

  6. Re:Dude by Rude+Turnip · · Score: 2, Funny

    You must be new here!

  7. I don't want to know where it comes from . . . by PolygamousRanchKid+ · · Score: 3, Funny

    . . . I want to know if it tastes good.

    Fruit should be lasered according to how it tastes: "Good", "Great!", "Sweaty Tennis Socks", etc.

    --
    Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
  8. Re:An answer in search for a problem? by maxume · · Score: 4, Funny

    Seriously? You are worried about a couple of grams of stickers that come on a few hundred or thousand grams of fruit? You could probably eat bananas for a year and still fit the stickers inside your nose.

    --
    Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
  9. Re:Dude by TheTrollToll · · Score: 2, Funny

    While we're at it why don't we complain that the CO2 laser is going to increase gobal warming

  10. Re:What does this do, chemically? by Abstrackt · · Score: 4, Funny

    Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.

    --
    They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it's not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance. - Terry Pratchett
  11. Re:An answer in search for a problem? by Kozz · · Score: 4, Funny

    1. A sticker when placed will be a nice breading gown for bacteria. Then the sticker is often pealed off after the fruit is washed.

    My eyes, my eyes! Spelling! Punctuation! Please, tell me that English is not your first language... otherwise I hope you're still enrolled in English 101.

    But on the bright side, you win Google Golf for "breading gown".

    --
    I only post comments when someone on the internet is wrong.
  12. Re:Wrong problem by cwrinn · · Score: 5, Funny

    Unless of course that taste is like chicken.

    --
    Here's a cookie... *psst* it's MAGIC
  13. Re:An answer in search for a problem? by Pikkebaas · · Score: 2, Funny

    Then, as soon as you tare the breading gown and peal or the skin which get toss in the garbage anyway.

  14. Deep Thoughts by operagost · · Score: 5, Funny

    As I bit into the nectarine, it had a crisp juiciness that I found pleasurable... until I realized that it wasn't a nectarine at all, but a human head.

    --

    Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
  15. Envy by LtGordon · · Score: 3, Funny

    I love flan, but I just can't eat it and drive at the same time. Look! I've got flan all over me! Introducing: Pocket Flan!

  16. Mmmm Massive Grapefruit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Once the technology is approved in the US, researchers from the University of Florida and the USDA Agricultural Research Service hope that it will be used in Florida's massive grapefruit industry."

    I LOVE massive grapefruit. They have more flavor than the massless variety.

  17. Re:Dude by amplt1337 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Arrogant tech nerds (myself included) are often suspicious of change. There's something just so satisfying about being able to say "Nuh uh, you're wrong!" or otherwise indulge in world-weary cynicism.

    Besides, I like to think of Slashdot as being populated almost entirely by Andy Rooney.

    --
    Freedom isn't free; its price is the well-being of others.
  18. Re:What does this do, chemically? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I live in New Jersey - I couldn't care less if it causes cancer in the state of California.

  19. If the pharma industry is really hurting by commodoresloat · · Score: 4, Funny

    can't they just take something for the pain?

  20. Re:Wrong problem by nabsltd · · Score: 3, Funny

    Did she have any news about Ferris?