America's Test Kitchen: Produce Protection

November 22, 2007

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Newsweek

In recent kitchen tests we discovered that spraying produce with vinegar is

the best way to remove surface wax and pesticides, but could this method

destroy bacteria as well? Here is what we found:

The Experiment: We cleaned apples and pears four different ways: rinsing

under cold running tap water, scrubbing with a brush, washing with a vinegar

solution and scrubbing with antibacterial soap. We took surface samples from

the

produce and grew the bacteria in petri dishes.

Results: After four days, we compared the petri dishes and found that

rinsing under cold water had removed only 25 percent of bacteria, and scrubbing

with a brush removed 85 percent. The vinegar removed 98 percent of surface

bacteria, which made it nearly as effective as the antibacterial soap.

Recommendation: We recommend washing produce in a solution of 3 parts tap

water to 1 part distilled vinegar applied with a spray bottle. This method

should work for any firm, smooth-skinned produce like apples, pears, tomatoes

and

carrots.

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