Is plastic rice real or fake, and how much does rice cost per jin on the market?

In our southerners' three daily meals, rice is indispensable, yet in recent years there has been constant talk online about plastic rice, so is plastic rice real or fake? How much does ordinary rice cost per jin on the market? Can you buy plastic rice on the market?

The origin of plastic rice dates back to 2011, when a citizen in Nanjing picked out more than a dozen identical "plastic rice grains" from a bag of rice. In December 2016, Nigeria seized a batch of 102 bags of plastic rice smuggled into Nigeria and arrested a suspect. However, since 2008, China has not exported rice to Indonesia, and the "plastic rice" that appeared in Indonesia has nothing to do with our rice export enterprises.

However, Nigeria's National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control published the test results on December 30: among this rice there was good rice, and there was also some spoiled and contaminated rice. According to Nigeria's "The Punch" newspaper, the country's test results showed that this rice was not plastic, but real rice, only that "the microbial content inside had exceeded the permitted range for consumption," because it was not suitable for human consumption.

Rice said online to be made from plastic pellets. Plastic rice looks very similar to rice, only it is somewhat rounder than normal rice grains, whiter in color, and when pinched with a fingernail the grain is elastic and leaves a mark on the surface, with a texture very similar to plastic. Its prototype is plastic pellets, a kind of plastic product, similar in appearance to ordinary rice, mixed into edible rice, and eating it will inevitably harm the human body.

Although ordinary small workshops can produce plastic pellets, no one would use plastic pellets to pass off as rice for sale. A plastic producer said, "You may not have seen actual plastic pellets; it is very easy to tell which is a plastic pellet and which is rice, and it simply cannot be faked." So everyone should not worry too much about buying plastic rice on the market.

So how are rice prices on the market now? How much per jin, I think this is also what everyone wants to know. In fact, rice prices differ from region to region. The figure below shows rice price trends in some regions nationwide from 2017-4-05 to 2017-07-05:

Appendix: Identifying adulterated rice

1. Long-grain fragrant rice

Among rice, many so-called "long-grain fragrant rice" are not truly long-grain fragrant.

Identification method: First, from the grain shape, only grains with a length of more than 5.5mm and a length-to-width ratio of more than 2:1 can be called long-grain; moreover, long-grain fragrant rice should be fragrant rice, with the natural fragrance of rice, while many unscented rice are also sold as long-grain fragrant rice.

2. Fake fragrant rice with added essence

Some illegal processors add essence when polishing rice, making unscented rice smell like fragrant rice, in order to seek exorbitant profits.

Identification method: Soak rice with added essence in boiling water for 1~2 minutes; after soaking, the rice has no fragrance, while genuine fragrant rice still has fragrance after soaking.

3. Rice with added mineral oil

Some old rice or inferior rice, after being milled again to remove the deteriorated part of the rice surface, becomes much brighter after polishing, and is then mixed into normal rice and sold. Some normal rice is even polished with added mineral oil during processing to make the rice brighter, in order to deceive consumers.

Identification method: Although inferior polished rice and rice with added mineral oil are very bright, the rice color is somewhat dark, and it smells of a greasy, off odor.

4. Identifying dyed rice:

Colored rice (such as black rice, purple rice, etc.) is nutritious, but unscrupulous rice merchants add pigment to dye the rice in order to deceive consumers.

Identification method: The core of colored rice is white, but in dyed rice, color will also seep into the core; normal colored rice will lose a slight amount of color when washed, but if the color loss is severe, it may be dyed rice.