On Jul 4, 2007, at 5:04 PM, Ron Hoggan wrote:
> They absolutely do this! If you put a banana in a bowl with local  
> fruit it
> will ripen the local fruit faster because it will continue to  
> release some
> of that gas. They do that so they can pick and ship the fruit when  
> it is
> quite green, then they can use the gas to ripen it quickly so it is  
> just
> right when it is on display in the store. I don't remember the name  
> of the
> gas, but it is a standard practice.
> Best Wishes,
> Ron


Got it! Ethylene gas, and here's a site all about "safe" use:

http://www.ethylenecontrol.com/about.html


ginny