www.mangosteen.com
F.A.Q.
F.A.Q. means Frequently Asked Questions. I am trying to save time, mine and yours, by answering those questions which I anticipate may be asked many times over and which I can address here and now. By doing this, I am eliminating the need to answer them again later and so if any emails are received which were already addressed by the F.A.Q. then I will not answer them again. Sorry for this inconvenience.
1) Is the domain name "mangosteen.com" for sale?
No, never. Not at any price.
2) Is the domain name "mangosteen.com" available for lease, rent, banner placement, promotions or partnerships of any type?
No to all of the above. No to any and all at any price!
3) Do you have any mangosteens available for sale?
No. I have already made long term commitments to my existing customers and am sold out for the next 10 years or longer. I repeat, I do not have any mangosteens for sale.
4) Where can I get fresh mangosteens if I live in the US, Canada or Europe?
Mangosteens are not allowed in the US as a fresh fruit unless they are from Hawaii (treated) or from Puerto Rico (no treatment required). They do show up illegally sometimes in the various Chinatowns around the US and are subject to seizure. They are available legally in Canada and can be found in Toronto and Vancouver and elsewhere on occasion. Shipping them from Canada to the States is illegal. And in Europe, they can be found in farmers' markets and supermarkets from London to Rome and beyond.
It now appears likely that Thailand will be allowed to ship several different types of fruit including the mangosteen to the US in 2006 following irradiation. This may be the first opportunity for many to try this wonderful fruit. Let's hope they arrive in good shape and have not lost any of their wonderful appeal.
Addendum:
February 8, 2008
They are here! The government of Thailand has succeeded in delivering to our shores what may be, for most people, their first chance to try the mangosteen. Irradiated and shipped fresh. Several supermarkets and ethnic food stores have them on their premises as I type and there have been sightings (NY, CA, TX, NJ) scattered around the US since January. The quality is a function of how quickly it reaches your location, as is the case with everything, so look for a slight softness in the rind and then, get out your wallet. The price will vary according to the time of year as the main harvest is not for another few months. Once the harvest size goes up, the price will come down and hopefully, the size of the individual fruit will also increase.
September 20, 2007
The most recent information I have is that in November of 2007, the government of Thailand will begin shipping those fruits that are approved for export (following irradiation) that are in season. Two fruits in particular which are expected are the mango and the longan. I was told that there may be lesser quantities of the mangosteen included as it is really late in their season for this year. The initial gateway into the US of A will be Los Angeles, CA. Lucky them.
This is potentially very good news for the farmers of Thailand. The ability to reach out and expand into new markets assists them in remaining in the challenging field of agriculture, with its feast or famine cycles of availability and price and occasional overabundance for the local market. And also gives Americans a chance to try new and exotic fruits that they may not have had before or varieties of familiar fruits that are new to them.
I will try to add to this addendum as I receive additional information.
5) Are you opposed to the consumption of mangosteen-related products?
No, far from it. I hope that clinical trials or scientifically obtained proof substantiates the claims made by some marketers. I would then be well situated to wholeheartedly endorse these products. Just not yet.
I have a request. Do not send me any literature or books or documents or mangosteen-related products of any sort. The proof will be in the scientific media and technical journals when the work has been done according to sound scientific practices and independent clinical trials.
Addenda March 21, 2006
The site www.mangosteen.com has now been up since the end of January of 2006. Because there have been several weeks of email sent to me regarding this web site, I can now add to the F.A.Q. section with some more focused comments.
Many people, in theory after reading the entire web site, still felt it was advisable or sensible (or funny???) to ask me for ideas on how to obtain the processed mangosteen products. I must direct your attention to the page titled "Science, non-science and nonsense." This should eliminate the need for me to answer this question. But there is a bit more than that going on. Some of you actually were directed to this site by either inept or unscrupulous processed mangosteen juice vendors who had the link prominently placed on their web sites. Smart move! Not. Once this site was launched, all the traffic from that link went here. And some of you are still doing this, even though this site would hardly be called a promotional for your products. On the bright side, maybe some of you who were misdirected here might find enlightenment. I hope the irony is appreciated. And then there is that small group of you juice vendors who had the www.mangosteen.com link in your site but when someone clicked on it, surprise surprise, they were taken somewhere else...
Some of you have made the assumption that if the claims made by the processed mangosteen product sellers are worthy, then consuming the fresh fruit is a good substitute; going back to the source, as it were. I doubt it. The fresh fruit is quite wonderful to eat but is much less loaded with the bitter and complex organic chemicals found in the rind. If it had the same chemicals in it, it would taste horrible. On its own merits, it is just a delicious fresh fruit. I hope to post the nutrient content of the edible portion of the mangosteen by the end of 2006.
There have also been a number of people out there who figured out how to (illegally?) abuse the email and domain registration system and who set up email addresses with the "@mangosteen.com" in them. Until the web site was launched, this worked and you got away with it. After the web site was set up with the current email address "information@mangosteen.com", guess where all your mail started going!!! Most of you are in the USA and many of you are sellers of processed mangosteen products. I know, I get your mail. I have gotten in touch with several of you and to a person, you have all lied about it and denied it. Some of you quickly changed your email addresses and several still have not. There are also spoofers who are simply spamming people and some who get sales leads, online marketing conference invitations with the ID's and so on. Very classy lot. Please stop.
So, on with the new F.A.Q.'s.
6) Are you a medical doctor or pharmacist?
No. I am not a doctor, I do not have an M.D., I never went to medical school and I am also not affiliated with the pharmaceutical industry nor do I have any financial arrangements with any medical or pharmaceutical organization. I have a B.S. in agriculture.
7) Can you help me with a medical problem that is referred to by the testimonial claims made by processed mangosteen product users?
I am so very sorry to hear this and the answer has to be no. I have heard some terribly sad accounts (and they are confidential and safe with me forever, do not worry) and realize that when people get desperate enough they will try anything. They have either not found relief from the conventional medical community (some simply do not trust doctors) or lack the financial means or insurance to use conventional medicine. In desperation, they turn to the internet and voilá, the processed mangosteen product claims online seem to address every known malady and either claim to cure them or provide relief for them. The big processors wisely distance themselves from this kind of malicious hucksterism and exploitation, leaving it to other less ethical people to prey on the desperate. It does not get much more disgusting than this.
As I said to one person who asked many very fair questions and who also disclosed that she is a seller of one of these processed mangosteen beverages, if, and I repeat if there was a remote chance that any of the claims made online were true, wouldn't the scientific community flock to these products to study them, understand them, document their global potential for cures or relief for the as yet incurable diseases mentioned in the testimonials? They would IF there was any validity. They would seek out the medically beneficial active ingredients and try to make money off them IF there were any. And don't the people who profit from these allegedly miraculous beverages have an obligation to mankind to let the world know what they have so it can documented scientifically and not just anecdotally??? Time will tell.
My final comment on question #7 is that amongst the alleged claims made by the testimonials is one that quite simply defies the laws of science. And common sense. Some claim that they were cured of or found relief for diabetes. Interesting. The consumption of sugar and sweeteners other than artificial is never a good idea for diabetics and some of these products require large amounts of sweeteners to make the juices palatable. This claim calls for more study before some actual diabetic gets ill or goes into a coma. Maybe someone who made the claim should be located and studied... maybe prosecuted.
The email address is information@mangosteen.com and if it is overloaded or misused, it will be removed. I can not promise I will answer all the emails that I receive but I will do my best. Please, read the FAQ's first!!!
