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Washing 'not enough' to ensure fruit and veg safety
12 Apr 2008
Washing fruit and vegetables prior to eating them may not be enough to prevent the spread of harmful bacteria and prevention of illnesses, research claims.
Research presented at a meeting of the American Chemical Society suggests that bacteria can remain in the leaves of vegetables such as lettuce, spinach and fruit even after they have been washed.
Furthermore, salmonella and E. coli can form into 'tightly-knit' communities called biofilms, researchers say, that are able to coat fruits and vegetables and protect bacteria from being removed.
Even using disinfectants to wash food, such as pre-prepared salads washed with chemical sanitisers such as chlorine, cannot guarantee that the food is completely germ free, the study claimed.
Scientists are now looking at ways of ensuring greater safety of fruit and vegetables including treating food with radiation.
This method was found to kill 99.99 per cent of the bugs during tests on lettuce and spinach when a high dose was used.
"When bacteria are protected - whether they're inside a leaf or inside a biofilm - they're not going to be as easy to kill," lead author Brendan Niemira, a microbiologist with the US Department of Agriculture Research Service, said.
"This is the first study to look at the use of irradiation on bacteria that reside inside the inner spaces of a leaf or buried within a biofilm."
Although some consumer groups remain concerned about treating food with irradiation in this way, a poll has found that 60 to 90 per cent of consumers in the US would buy irradiated food for its potential benefits.
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