University of Georgia experts say some produce washes are
more
effective at removing harmful pathogens from fresh fruits and
vegetables than the chlorine rinses the food industry uses.
Larry Beuchat, a microbiologist with the UGA College of
Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences, has tested many produce washes in
his Griffin, Ga., lab.
“I’ve tested produce washes that are currently on the
market and some that are in the developmental stages,”
Beuchat
said. “Some are as good as water when used to remove
pathogenic
bacteria from a wide range of fruits and vegetables. Some are
perhaps even better than chlorine, which is used fairly
extensively
in the produce industry to wash fresh-cut produce.”
Tested on Lettuce, Tomatoes, Apples and
Alfalfa Sprouts
Beuchat says Fit, a Procter and Gamble product, worked well
in lab tests. “Fit performs as well as high levels of
chlorine
when used to remove populations of bacteria on lettuce,
tomatoes,
apples and alfalfa seeds intended for sprouts,” he said.
“The science is there to prove it removes these
pathogens,”
he said. “But Procter and Gamble can’t state that on the
product label until they get EPA and FDA approval to do
so.”
But should you add Fit or other produce washes to your
shopping
cart? Beuchat said it’s your decision.
“Whether you buy produce washes is a matter of personal
choice,” he said. “If you are concerned about
pathogenic
microorganisms on your produce, I would recommend buying it. I
haven’t tested all the products on the market. But in my
experience,
it does as good a job as chlorinated water and sometimes
better.”
Pesticide Residues
Produce-wash manufacturers label their products as effective
at removing pesticides. But UGA foods and nutrition specialists
don’t recommend buying the washes solely for this reason.
“In the United States, there’s very little produce with
pesticide residues anywhere near the allowed tolerance
levels,”
said Elizabeth Andress, an Extension Service food safety
specialist with the UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences.
“It would be hard to find detectable levels of pesticide residues
on our fruits and vegetables even if you went looking for
them.”
Andress said the FDA safeguards fresh produce by monitoring
pesticide residues at wholesale and retail levels.
“If you use a produce wash, you may be reducing the
levels
of pesticide residues. But the levels were nowhere near harmful
to begin with,” she said.
If you just want cleaner produce, Andress recommends washing
produce under running water.
“Tests show produce washes do apparently make produce
a little bit cleaner,” Andress said. “But I would
personally
question whether they are worth the extra cost.”
Don’t Soak Produce in
Washes
Despite the introduction of produce washes, UGA foods
specialists
still recommend cleaning fruits and vegetables under running
water.
“What slightly concerns me is the way these products are
applied,” Andress said. “To clean produce, you have
to soak the food in the produce wash. Soaking produce can damage
the quality. I hope people don’t let their fruits and vegetables
sit in these solutions, thinking, ‘the longer it soaks, the
better.’”
Aside from cleaning produce and removing pesticides and
pathogens,
produce washes claim to remove wax.
“Even if the product does remove wax, these are
food-grade
waxes that aren’t harmful,” Andress said. “They’re
already
approved for food use.”
Produce washes have many uses. But as with other products,
shoppers will ultimately determine their success.
“We aren’t telling people produce washes aren’t safe to
use, because that’s not true,” Andress said. “They are
effective. But to me, it’s more of an economic issue. Is the cost
really worth it? It depends on whether you want to pay for the
added safeguard.”
