KCBA - Monterey, Salinas, Santa Cruz - News Weather-Should You Wash Bagged Lettuce?
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Do you wash your lettuce even if it's bagged and says its pre washed? A new report says you probably should. This report is from the March edition of Consumer Reports. It questions the cleanliness of bagged salad that says it's pre-washed.
The three companies named in the report are right in our backyard, Earthbound Farm Organic, Dole and Fresh Express. Each had at least one sample indicating fecal contamination.
The question now becomes what do you have to do and what is the produce industry saying about the report. The study done by Consumer Reports magazine, found bacteria that often indicate fecal contamination in about a fifth of samples.
The United Fresh Produce Association which represents produce companies such as Dole and Fresh Express says the bacteria found in this study is not harmful," There is nothing they found that was pathogenic so essentially it means the food was safe to eat and posed no threat to public health," said Ray Gilmer, the Vice President of Communications for the United Fresh Produce Association.
But Dr. Huge Stallworth with the Monterey County Health Department says that's not necessarily true. The bacteria found in some of the samples are often the first red flag for contaminated food, "It means that there has been fecal contamination maybe of just that bag or maybe of an entire lot or maybe in an entire shipment and possibly in there could be pathogenic contamination," said Stallworth.
So what can you do to protect your family? Dr. Stallworth says washing your food is your best bet, "We recommend that people wash their fruits and vegetables whether they're in a bag or not," said Stallworth.
The United Fresh Produce Association told me today lettuce that's pre washed in factories is safer when eaten right of the bag, instead of being washed again at home," There is a chance of cross contamination from handling in the home that may exceed any benefit that you might get from washing that produce again," said Gilmer.
Right now there are no industry standards for levels of certain bacteria in lettuce but lawmakers are trying to change that.
