Fruit and vegetable washes are a must in every household. The average fruit or vegetable has over 4.4 pesticides alone on it. And while some may not consider that a big deal, think otherwise. If you eat a ton of fruits and vegetables a day and multiply that per week and so on… you have compounded the amount of pesticides and insecticides in your body.
Even if you buy organic, you still need to use a fruit and vegetable wash since organic produce has some “safe” chemicals sprayed on them too. Organic foods are not void of pesticides; they just use a different type that makes its more green than what conventional farming uses.
Do Fruit and Vegetable Washes Really Work?
It depends. If you are looking to remove just any dirt or grime off your produce, you can use water and give it a good soak and scrub.
However, if you are trying to loosening up any bacteria, chemicals, pesticides, or the wax they add to apples, then you are better off using a fruit wash to get that stuff out.
What are the Best Fruit and Vegetable Washes?
So below are my tried and tested washes that have removed a significant amount of residue from my produce.
These washes are not only effective, but they are cost conscious too.
My rating on the one I love the most is a 4.8/5 below!
Let’s jump right to the list!
Related: Organic Food Labels and How to Tell the Difference
1. Fit Organics Fruit and Vegetable Wash
Fit Organics wash is easy to use. And while all of the fruit and vegetable washes you will read about are not inexpensive, this one is definitely worth it. A capful goes a long way. This fruit and vegetable wash is USDA certified, Kosher, and also happens to the leader of fruit and vegetable washes by Nielsen’s. It claims to remove 98% more pesticides, contaminants and waxes than water alone. It also has no weird smell and does not change the taste of the produce.
Oh and its never tested on animals and is a cruelty-free product. Yay for the good guys.
My Rating: 4.6/5
2. Rebel Green Fruit and Vegetable Spray
This fruit and vegetable wash uses kosher ingredients like organic lime and lemon extract, and other plant derived ingredients. This comes in a spray bottle for ease of use. Rebel Green claims the wash removes hand oils, surface waxes (good for them apples), pesticides (of course) and dirt. They use eco-friendly packaging so that’s a plus.
My Rating: 4.0/5
3. ECOS Fruit and Veggie Wash Spray
I actually love this fruit and vegetable wash from ECOS. All of its ingredients are plant or corn derived which is great for you and your body! You can use the solution to soak your produce. They are phosphate-free, chlorine-free, enzyme-free and dye-free. And they are free of ingredients that have petroleum. They also are non-toxic, plant based, natural, biodegradable, and what I love the most – never tested on our little four legged friends.
And these guys have been in the green science business for over 50 years!
My Rating: 4.8/5
4. Botano Health Fruit and Vegetable Wash
Botano Health’s fruit and vegetable wash is great at removing surface wax, pesticides, and chemical residues that land on your produce. It does not leave a bad taste on your produce so that a plus. Also, it is concentrated, so a little really des go a long way. This one is another good one to soak and let your produce sit for a few minutes before rinsing them out.
This organic wash is a great addition to your kitchen.
My Rating: 4.5/5
5. Environne Fruit and Vegetable Wash
Environne’s fruit and vegetable wash is made from plant-derived ingredients, it is kosher certified and gluten free too. It does remove those surface level pesticides that are on sitting on your produce, and does not leave any lingering smell or taste. The cleansing agents are derived from plant oils, so that’s good.
It does have lemon/orange and grapefruit seed extract, which gives it a slight pleasing scent.
My Rating: 4.7/5
How Do You Disinfect Vegetables Naturally?
If you are not too sure yet about buying a fruit and vegetable wash, soaking your veggies in a tub of vinegar for a few minutes is an easy way to disinfect your produce too.
Use 1 tablespoon of white vinegar for every 5 cups of clean water.
While this may not completely remove all pesticides, bacteria or residue, it is a safe way to clean off dirt and debris from your vegetables and fruit.
In Conclusion
We all need to wash our produce before eating it. Fruits and vegetables are so absorbent that we may not think they are sprayed with pesticides or insecticides, but they are. And as mentioned above, organic fruits and veggies need to be washed too. I hope this list of fruit and vegetable washes inspires you to go out and buy organic but also know that those need to be washed too.
As a bonus, here’s a list of EWG’s dirty dozen and clean 15 that you can keep handy when visiting the produce section. It’s a quick cheat sheet on what you may want to thoroughly wash if you choose to buy those vegetables or fruits.
What other produce washes have or have not worked for you? Comment below!
Featured photo courtesy of pexels.com
Article last updated on January 19th, 2022
