Question

A student purchases and weighs 5 pounds of carrots from a local grocery store. She notices that the grocery store constantly sprays its produce with distilled water. After returning home, she weighs the carrots again and discovers that they weigh only 4.2 lbs. They also no longer seem as crisp and taut. Provide a possible explanation for why the carrots weighed more at the store, based on the information learned in this lab.

Answer 1

The grocery store constantly sprays its produce with distilled water to keep them hydrated and look fresher. If the regular misting (spraying with water) of vegetables are not done, they will rapidly dry out and experience a reduction in weight and shrink in size. This is the reason why the carrots weighed more at the store and when brought home they appeared crisp and taut and weighed less.

Step-by-step explanation:

The constant spraying of water (misting) over vegetables and fruits in a grocery store keeps them hydrated and make them look fresher and more appealing to the customers. It also prevents them from drying out for the duration of their shelf life.

When they’re rooted in the ground, the root hairs of plants absorb water and essential nutrients through osmosis from the soil where they’re planted. Once they’re uprooted and stored in a place like home or a grocery store, they should be misted so that the moisture is maintained throughout their shelf life. If the regular misting of vegetables and fruits are not done, they would start to wilt and rapidly dry out, experience a reduction in weight and shrink in size.