There was an interview with a person from the CDC I saw several years ago when there was concern about romaine lettuce. He said they had research that showed rinsing fruit and veg (he said never use any soaps or other products) didn’t decrease the incidence of any food borne illnesses or reduce the amount of pesticides or herbicides but he still always rinsed his fruit and veg.
From that I basically changed my own policy in our house. If it was easy to rinse like an apple, then do it. But if it’s hard or annoying like lettuce and I don’t want to do it and will choose something unhealthy to eat rather than rinse my lettuce for a salad, I don’t do it. We’ve never gotten sick from contaminated fruit or veg and we eat way more fruit and veg now than we used to.
My son in Africa had to do a bleach soak for anything uncooked. I am in immune suppression so I soak everything in oxygen bleach for 30 seconds when I come home from the store.
I add a bit of hot water to the dish pan to activate about 2-3 Tablespoons of the powder. Fill the dishpan with cold water, then the fruits and veggies, then rinse and put in the drainer. I put dirtier stuff like carrots in last. (Leave the small things like strawberries and grape tomatoes in their drainable containers.)
Also soap is not a problem. We wash our dishes and utensils in soap. Then rinse and dry and put them repeatedly in our mouths.
Bonus is how easy it is to make a salad with everything already washed and dried. Carrot and celery tops and bottoms cut off etc.
I store veggies in brown lunch or cloth bags. Being clean and dry, they last longer. Dirty stuff rots in plastic.
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