On Food and Cooking

from making jellies with those raw fruits.
Of course there are a few carnivorous
plants that trap insects and other small
creatures in digestive juices. And in some
plant parts, similar enzymes probably
provide protection against attack by insects
and larger animals, whose insides they can
irritate or injure. But fruits are meant to be
eaten by animals so that the animals will
disperse the plant’s seeds. So why fill them
with proteases?
In the cases of papaya, pineapple,
melon, fig, and kiwi, the enzymes may
limit the number of fruits that any one
animal eats: too many and the animal’s
digestive system suffers. Another
intriguing suggestion is that in moderation,
the enzymes actually benefit seed-
dispersing animals by ridding them of
intestinal parasites. Some tropical peoples
use fig and papaya latex for this purpose,
and it’s known that the enzymes do indeed