During my undergraduate studies in NY, I had a friend whose father owned a pineapple company in Hawaii. We often referred to her as the “Pineapple Princess.” I remember going to Maui and visiting her and her family on their compound on the foothills of Haleakala and taking a tour of the farm, where people engaged in the backbreaking work planting and picking the sweet and prickly beasts.

Our tour guide informed us that they often employed the use of prisoners on work-release programs to do the picking. Little did these prisoners know (or perhaps they were acutely aware) that picking pineapples can actually increase one’s ability to live a life a crime.

It turns out that pineapples have a chemical in them called bromelain, which is a mixture of protein-digesting enzymes. As your body itself is a whole mess of proteins, legend has it that, over time, pineapple cutters exposed to bromelain will suffer a complete obliteration of their fingerprints–the perfect asset to any criminal mastermind or evil Kevin Spacey.

A blogging Brit, Thomas Scott, was intrigued by this idea and decided to see what he could do to remove his own fingerprints using store-bought pineapples, a blender, and a lot of time.

His results are as amusing as they are painful! Check out a video of his adventure here.

One Comment Crazy Stuff, Food/Recipes, Fruit/Veggies, Thought