Mandarin Oranges

I am fascinated with processing / manufacturing lines. I enjoy playing a game of "how did they make this" - but one thing that has always mystified me has been canned mandarin oranges. The wedges are so fragile - and they are _peeled_. Not just the skin - but the little membrane around each wedge. My leading theory was a sweatshop full of children (small fingers). Well - hold on to your pants: I finally have an answer (and it will surprise you)!

It turns out according to this answer site that the "solution" is very base-ic...

...mandarins are first scalded (in hot water) to loosen the peel, then they are soaked in a lye solution, which digests away the albedo and membranes. Then the sections are washed in several rinses of plain water to clean them up.

Fascinating, yet disturbing... talk about a chemical peel! How plausible is this? Well it is the best explaination I've heard - and the poster on AnswerBag doesn't seem the type to lye.