Even buckwheat can be dangerous if it's Chinese. But how to distinguish it from Russian
In the modern world, the word "Chinese" means "harmful, substandard and even dangerous." And this opinion is fully justified by the things that we get from this country. As you know, agriculture in China is carried out with the active use of chemicals. they are especially used on those products that are intended for export. It should be beautiful, smooth, and aesthetic in appearance. What am I telling you, we all see Chinese fruits and vegetables - one to one, the eye rejoices. But it is impossible to eat them - tasteless, odorless and not spoiling for years!
But recently I learned from a friend who works in a well-known company that produces cereals that even we have Chinese buckwheat in Russia! Moreover, every year it becomes more and more, because agriculture in Russia is being destroyed more and more every day. Buckwheat producers in our country refuse to grow this crop - it is unprofitable because of the competition with cheap Chinese buckwheat.
But how to recognize Chinese buckwheat?
The fact is that looking at the manufacturer's packaging is useless. Most of them only pack purchased groats under their own brand. And they buy it in the same place - in China. Therefore, it seems that all our groats are Russian, which is completely untrue.
There are three differences. True, I cannot say that they are completely obvious. I hardly found the Russian kernel on these grounds. That is, in a store of 10 packages, only one is Russian!
1. Russian groats are small, with sharp edges of grains. Moreover, these sharp edges are pronounced. Made in the Middle Kingdom - larger, its edges are smoother.
2. Our buckwheat is lighter in color, because it is subjected to a single hot steam treatment. And imported ones are processed twice, as a result it becomes dark.
3. For the price, the Russian should be expensive. Moreover, it is 2 or three times more expensive than imported. These are the realities of today's market - agriculture in Russia is being stifled by all means. And our collective farmers are forced to recoup their costs at the expense of the price of the goods. In China, on the contrary, agriculture from the state receives all kinds of subsidies and their goods are cheap. But even this sign does not give any guarantee.
Why can't you eat Chinese buckwheat?
It is dangerous to eat it because it can be loaded with pesticides. I wrote about this above.
Mold was often found in Chinese buckwheat, which, as you know, can cause cancer. What caused this is unclear. Most likely, improper storage conditions or characteristics of the variety.
Uselessness is the main reason to refuse buckwheat groats from the eastern neighbor. The steam treatment to which it is subjected leads to the loss of most of the nutrients. Hence - in it only fiber remains of the useful, and even part of the minerals that will not go anywhere. But if they are flavored with chemicals, then they are unlikely to be useful.
So choose buckwheat carefully.