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Tips for Safe Handling of Fruits and Vegetables
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You hear a lot in the news about germs in fruits and vegetables - salmonella in melons, shigella in tossed salad, E. coli in fresh apple cider. Although rare, disease-causing bacteria can hitch a ride on these foods into your kitchen. But there are easy ways to keep them out of your body:
- Wash your hands with warm water and soap before and after handling food.
- Rinse raw produce in warm water. Don't use soap or detergents. A small scrub brush can remove surface dirt if needed.
- Use plastic rather than wooden cutting boards. Bacteria can hide in the grooves of wooden ones.
- Store cut, peeled, and broken-apart fruits and vegetables at or below 41 degrees F - in other words, in the refrigerator.
- Don't buy - or serve - fruits or vegetables that look brownish, slimy or dried out.
Source: US Food and Drug Administration. Fruits and vegetables: eating your way to 5 a day. FDA Consumer Magazine, March 1997.
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