Ask a Question

How to check apricots for bugs

Does it need checking? Dried apricots: yes. Fresh apricots are sometimes infested in Israel, and not commonly infested in the USA. (Rav Moshe Vaya) Split them and check them by good light.

Rav Vaya’s rating

USA✓not commonly infested (muchzak k’naki)
Israel★sometimes infested (mi’ut hamatzui)

Rav Moshe Vaya, Bedikat HaMazon K’Halacha, Degree of Infestation chart, p. 938 (Apricot)

Which bugs

  • Dried apricots can have worms and ants inside. Look on the sides too.
  • They stand out because their color is different from the apricot. Some worms are dried inside the fruit.
  • Fresh apricots: a brown-red larva can be found by the pit. In a soft fruit, look for small white worms inside the flesh. (Rav Moshe Vaya)
  • Red or brown dots on the skin of a fresh apricot are not scale insects. (Rav Moshe Vaya)

How to check

  1. Sun-dried apricots without sulfites (dried brown) are very hard to check, even under good light. It is recommended to stay away from them.
  2. Apricots with sulfites keep their orange-yellow color. They come from California or Turkey. Split each one in half.
  3. Look at the opened apricot over or under good light. Worms and ants are easy to spot because their color is different from the apricot.
  4. Look well at the sides too.
  5. A magnifying glass makes them easier to see.
  6. If you find a worm or an ant, remove it. Then the apricot can be eaten.
  7. Apricots from Turkey are much more infested, so be extra careful with them. Apricots from other places are less infested, but they still have bugs once in a while. Check them too.

Watch

▶ Bugs, Worms, and Ants in Apricots

Pictures

An opened apricot is held over a bright light box and checked with a probe
An opened apricot is held over a bright light box and checked with a probe. (“Bugs, Worms, and Ants in Apricots”, 0:44)
A split apricot over the light, with the probe pointing to a worm inside
A split apricot over the light, with the probe pointing to a worm inside. (“Bugs, Worms, and Ants in Apricots”, 1:00)

Sources

  • Rav Moshe Vaya, Bedikat HaMazon K’Halacha, Degree of Infestation chart, p. 938 (rating).
  • Rav Moshe Vaya, Bedikat HaMazon K’Halacha: summary sheet “How to Find Worms in Summer Fruits” (published by Machon Aliya).
  • cRc: fresh apricots do not need to be checked for insect infestation. (Fruits & Vegetables Checking Guide)

Related

References: cRc — Fruits & Vegetables Checking Guide · Rav Moshe Vaya — “How to Find Worms in Summer Fruits” (Machon Aliya, Hebrew)