Help Your Community Make Informed Choices About Produce
With recent recalls and outbreaks implicating produce, some people may feel uncertain about choosing and eating fruits and vegetables. That uncertainty could lead them to avoid produce altogether, potentially missing out on the important vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other nutrients that fruits and vegetables provide. You can help your community feel more confident by offering practical, easy-to-follow information they can use to make informed choices and handle produce safely. Use these simple tips and resources to help people feel good about choosing, preparing, and enjoying the fruits and vegetables that nourish their bodies.
Tips to Choose and Eat Produce Confidently
1. Rinse produce thoroughly. Rinse all fresh fruits and vegetables under clean running water, including before you peel them. Use a clean vegetable brush to scrub firm produce. Note that rinsing produce is an appropriate first step in preparing produce, but may not remove all germs and bacteria.
2. Check for bruises and discard outer layers. Choose fruits and vegetables that are free of bruises or damaged spots, unless you plan to cook them. When possible, discard outer layer of fruits and vegetables. For example, throw away the outer two to three layers of leafy greens.
3. Prioritize cooking. For any produce that can be cooked, cooking to a temperature of at least 165 °F (73.9°C) is the safest option, as most germs and bacteria cannot survive at these elevated temperatures.
4. Refrigerate cut, peeled, or cooked fruits and veggies promptly. Fruits and vegetables that have had their protective skin removed are more susceptible to bacterial growth. Refrigerate them as soon as possible, or within 2 hours, to help reduce risk, and use a fridge thermometer to make sure the temperature stays at 40°F or below.
5. Separate fresh fruits and veggies from raw meat, poultry, and seafood. Raw meat, poultry, and seafood can drip juices that may have germs or bacteria. Store them away from fruits and veggies in the fridge, not next to or below them, and keep them separate in your shopping cart and grocery bags. Using a separate cutting board for fruits and vegetables that’s never used for cutting or preparing raw meats, poultry, or seafood can also reduce the risk of spreading germs.
6. Check for recalls. Check the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website for recent recalls, market withdrawals, & safety alerts, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website for current foodborne outbreaks.
