Taiwan Today

A class focusing on herbal study at the Taijiang branch of Tainan Community College has discovered that bromelain, an enzyme found in pineapples, is an effective odor reducer and can help clean up the environment after massive floods such as those that recently hit southern Taiwan. The class concocted a large amount of the bromelain mixture by itself earlier this year and sent it to aid Zengwen Community College in Madou. They welcome local residents whose homes were impacted by floods caused by Typhoon Morakot to fetch as much as they want of the mixture with their own containers at the college. The natural bromelain cleaning fluid was created by the class instructor and students by mixing the various ingredients on their own. Volunteers took batches of the fluid to clean up the facility in the study hall at the Chaohuanggong Temple. The fluid helped get rid of the dirt, filth and odors left behind by the flooding. On Aug. 19, 40 to 50 liters of the fluid were transported to the Zengwen Community College in Madou to help out in the post-disaster cleanup. It successfully got rid of the pervasive fishy smell left by the flooding. Liu Yu-jun, one of the students, signed up to take the class on herbs last semester, saying that she and her classmates got the idea of collecting 800 kilograms of pineapple peels, to which they added molasses and water. They let the mixture ferment for three months, creating the natural bromelain enzyme cleaning fluid. To help with the reconstruction work in the wake of Typhoon Morakot, Liu went around collecting plastic bottles to bottle the fluid for distribution, stressing that the fluid is great for washing flood-damaged goods and wiping off tables and chairs. As a result, response to the natural cleaning fluid has been quite strong. Lee Wu-chang, an instructor, says that the bromelain enzyme cleaning fluid is not harmful to the skin. It is a plant-based nutritional supplement which happens to be good at getting rid of insects. The enzyme deserve a wide promotion so that the green lifestyle concept it represents can be embraced by more people, according to Lee. Liu is pleased that the students are able to use what they have learned to help out in the disaster relief effort, saying that they still have a big barrel of the fluid to give away. People can come with their own bottles and fill them up with the fluid over the next two days at 7 p.m. The phone number of the Taijiang branch is: 247-2150.