Everything You Need To Know About Vegetable Cleaners

At the heart of any nutritious diet lies a colorful array of fruits and vegetables. These colorful natural gems not only add flavor to our favorite recipes, but also serve as vital sources of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals crucial for our overall well-being.

However, as much as we emphasize the importance of consuming fresh produce, we must also address the often-overlooked aspect of ensuring their cleanliness. Bacteria, pesticides, and other contaminants can stubbornly cling to the surfaces of fruits and vegetables, posing potential health risks if consumed untreated. Additionally, the prevalence of pesticides has increased in recent decades, impacting the contamination levels in our food. Pesticides in foods and the environment are associated with a series of health conditions, including genetic disorders, diabetes, cancer, and neurotoxicity.

This is where the spotlight shifts to a lesser-known tool in our kitchen arsenal: the ultrasonic vegetable cleaner. Today, I will bring you up to speed on various produce cleaning methods.  We will also discuss how ultrasonic cleaners work and explore their efficacy. I have also looked at this from a real-world perspective – what is practical and affordable for the average household. In short, this post aims to equip you with everything you need to know about cleaning your fresh produce.

Everything You Need To Know About Vegetable Cleaners

When it comes to cleaning vegetables, there’s no shortage of methods. From the basic tap water rinse to more involved techniques, like soaking in vinegar or baking soda solutions, each approach offers its benefits and considerations. However, the ultrasonic vegetable cleaner offers unique benefits, and has proven to be exceptionally efficient at cleaning certain food types.

While ultrasonic cleaners might seem more familiar in the context of jewelry stores or dental offices, they’re making their way into kitchen settings. Despite their effectiveness in removing dirt, pesticides, and bacteria from various surfaces, many people remain unaware of their potential in culinary applications. Today we will discuss how they work, how they compare to other cleansing methods, and what factors to consider when shopping for one.

What Is A Vegetable Cleaner?

Unlike traditional produce cleaning methods, ultrasonic cleaners are specialized machines that gently clean with the push of a button. Ultrasonic vegetable cleaners utilize high-frequency vibrations to agitate water molecules. Subsequently, microscopic bubbles implode upon contact with surfaces, such as vegetables. This process, known as “cavitation,” dislodges many contaminants from fruits and vegetables, leaving them materially cleaner (source). Distinct from other methods, ultrasonic cleaning doesn’t require the use of additional chemicals or hands-on scrubbing.

Are Ultrasonic Fruit And Vegetable Cleaners Effective?

To begin, the main criterion used in the evaluation of produce cleaning is often pesticide removal. This post will summarize relevant pesticide reduction studies and provide suggestions for practical uses at home. After a lot of review, it is clear that there is no one method that works best in all situations. However, ultrasonic vegetable cleaners have earned a seat at the table because they consistently reduce pesticides and in some studies proved to be the most effective method for doing so (source).

Next, ultrasonic cleaners truly shine in applications where handling produce would be tedious or potentially damaging. For example, scrubbing grapes or thoroughly rinsing individual raspberries isn’t very practical. Ultrasonic cleaners provide the benefit of a hands-off cleaning method. Furthermore, ultrasonic cleaners can penetrate fine crevices far easier than many other methods. In fact, quality ultrasonic machines offer different frequencies to allow users to adjust for delicate foods. Overall, this method is being explored more and more as it can reduce produce cleaning times (source).

As referenced above, the effectiveness of the ultrasonic cleaner will depend on the food item as well as the specific type of pesticide residue. At the same time, ultrasonic cleaners reduce pesticide residues across a wide range of foods and do so in a relatively easy and practical manner.

More specifically, this study was conducted to evaluate the removal of 16 different pesticides found on strawberries. Ultrasonic cleaning lowered residues for all analyzed pesticides, with some pesticides reduced up to 91.2%. On the other hand, ultrasonic cleaners appear to be average at cleaning leafy greens, such as lettuce or spinach, reducing surface pesticides by 51-56%. We will see how this compares to other cleaning methods next.

Comparison To Other Vegetable Cleaning Methods

This post wouldn’t be complete without a quick review of alternative vegetable cleaning methods. Keep reading as you may be surprised!

Using Produce Wash Solutions

Recently, there have been numerous influencers on social media platforms talking about using various vegetable soaks or solutions. I wanted to know how legitimate any of these were. Was one better than another? Let’s take a look below.

Baking Soda Soak

This cleaning method involves dissolving baking soda into a bowl or sink of water and immersing fruits and vegetables in it for several minutes. Interestingly, this method proved to be the most successful at removing surface pesticides from apples when compared to soaking in plain tap water or a diluted bleach solution. After 12-15 minutes, both pesticides in this study were removed. However, no comparison was given to ultrasonic cleaning or any other method.

In another study involving leafy greens, a baking soda soak performed similarly to many other methods, removing roughly 52% of pesticides. Overall, baking soda may help reduce some pesticide residue removal, but we need more studies. Additionally, a thorough rinse is necessary to remove the baking soda solution, increasing washing time and water waste.

Diluted Vinegar Soak

Next up – the popular vinegar soaking method. Similar to baking soda, this method involves diluting vinegar in water (~50%) and immersing the produce. Vinegar is well known for its ability to reduce the growth of certain germs and mold. And this may extend to fresh produce as well (source). Consumer Reports state that while vinegar will not completely remove all bacteria, it can help reduce surface bacteria in foods (source).

One commercial study showed success in the use of vinegar vapor in reducing mold on produce. In my opinion, this could reasonably be extrapolated to a vinegar soak. I know many individuals use vinegar with fresh berries to prolong their shelf life and protect them from mold. But does vinegar reduce pesticide residue? Interestingly, yes; vinegar performed similarly to baking soda and ultrasonic cleaning in this leafy vegetable study. Similar results were also found in this study using various acetic acid concentrations on oranges.

Note, that some produce will retain a very faint taste of vinegar, but speaking from personal experience, I have not found it off-putting. So, while vinegar use can result in removing surface pesticides by half, it may also be useful in reducing mold if you don’t mind the slightly altered taste. The downside, of course, is the time required to soak and rinse the products. Lastly, I have found that leaving produce in a diluted vinegar solution for too long resulted in an unideal texture. If you use this method, set a timer for 10-12 minutes!

Fruit And Vegetable Washes

Surprisingly, every source I found emphatically stated that using vegetable detergents or soaps was the least recommended method of cleaning vegetables. In the leafy greens study, the researchers found fruit and vegetable washes the least effective at removing pesticides. Both the FDA and Consumer Reports advise against using vegetable soap washes as they can also leave trace amounts of soap residue. Furthermore, veggie wash solutions you purchase from a store may contain other concerning ingredients or preservatives. For these reasons, I suggest you skip this type of product altogether.

Boiling

Do you boil your produce often? While some data showed that boiling fruits and veggies reduces pesticide residues, there are many situations where this would not be practical. For example, while boiling was the second most effective method at removing pesticides in leafy greens, boiling lettuce doesn’t sound too good (source). Similarly, boiling reduced various pesticide compounds in strawberries by 42.8 to 92.9%, but often consumers aren’t looking to cook their strawberries! Lastly, even if you intended to use the produce for soups or jam, you would wash your fruits to remove the pesticides before adding them to the recipe. For this reason, I do not believe boiling is a practical method.

Still Or Running Tap Water

There are two parts in this section. First, most studies involving tap water assess the effectiveness of fruits or vegetables soaking in unmoving water. This was how my mother washed her produce. However, despite the popularity of this method, stagnant plain water was among the least effective methods for reducing pesticides. For example, soaking strawberries in tap water reduced different pesticides by only 19.8- 68.1% (source).

However, one study assessed several methods, including both still and running water. If you can believe it, the results found that running water was the most effective at removing pesticides from leafy vegetables. Yes, even more than all of the above-mentioned methods! Naturally, I am curious how all studies would perform using running tap water instead of still water. Also, would the composition of the tap water play a factor (e.g., chlorine level)? Would tap water be as effective on other types of pesticides? Clearly, it would be better to have more studies. Needless to say, if you do not have the time to use any other method, running tap water appears to be a top contender.

Currently, the FDA and Consumer Reports recommend rinsing produce to remove pesticides. It is unclear if they evaluated ultrasonic cleaning, or if they made this recommendation due to ease and accessibility of tap water. Yet, when in doubt, washing produce with any method is better than not washing it at all.

Selecting An Effective Ultrasonic Cleaner

If you are purchasing an ultrasonic cleaner, it’s important to buy a well-designed model. Online retailers, like Amazon, offer both professional and less legitimate looking options. After their review, I’d say that the specifications to look for include:

• A frequency of 40 kWh (or adjustable frequencies for delicate produce).
• The ability to control temperature.
• Models made with a stainless-steel basin appropriate for your needs (there is a wide range of sizes).
• Noise-reducing features or quieter machines (some units have the option of a sound-reducing box or come with a sound-reducing lid; this is more for convenience, as the noise level should not be a safety concern).

But did you know that ultrasonic machines come with a bonus? You can use them to clean more than just fruits and vegetables! Eyeglasses, jewelry, retainers, toothbrushes, clothing, and many other items can benefit from ultrasonic cleaning. 

Ultrasonic Model Recommendations

The following ultrasonic models meet the above-listed specifications. I would be wary of purchasing smaller, less professional units as, in my view, they don’t state the frequency used and have been unresponsive to my emails. Note that while they do not often list produce as suggested cleaning items, these machines can still do it! As with any new machine, give it a thorough cleaning before use.

• Vevor 2L Ultrasonic Cleaner: volume – 3 L; a 304 stainless steel industrial grade unit with adjustable time, frequency, and temperature settings.
• Roots & Harvest Multipurpose Ultrasonic Cleaner: volume – 10 L or 2.5 gallons; designed with several uses in mind, including washing produce; ideal for gardeners or those with larger batches of produce; comes with a stainless-steel basket; operates at a 40-kWh frequency and has 8 different settings for different foods.

Conclusion: Are Vegetable Cleaners Effective?

While Many Washing Methods Exist, Ultrasonic Vegetable Cleaners Offer A Unique, Effective, And Practical Approach For Removing Pesticides From Produce.

In conclusion, running water and ultrasonic cleaning appear to be the best methods of cleaning fruits and vegetables, depending on the type of food and pesticides used. Boiling can also be effective, but doesn’t work for all fresh produce and is time-intensive. Some consumers may use a vinegar soak to reduce mold spores or baking soda immersions, but any solution added will require a thorough rinse. The least effective method across all sources was the use of produce wash or detergent.

The FDA recommends that you consistently wash your hands and produce. This applies even when we intend on peeling our fruits and vegetables, as contaminants can transfer onto our hands and migrate to the peeled surfaces. Another factor to consider is how you store your washed produce. As a general rule, mimic the environment in which your grocer presents the fruits and veggies in store. After cleaning, let the produce dry (such as berries) to prevent spoilage. Carrots and items misted with water on store shelves are usually fine with a little moisture.

If you are purchasing an ultrasonic cleaner, it’s important to buy a well-designed model. Thankfully, if you do, you will find many practical uses for it, both in and out of the kitchen. To learn about other non-toxic cleaning methods in your home, check out my Truly Amazing Eco Non-Toxic Cleaning Blog Post. Every step we take helps to make our home a safer place to be.

Feel free to navigate the I Read Labels For You blog for useful information on safe products and ingredients. Also, check out my non-toxic products shop, download my e-books, and book a service if you need assistance with healthy living.

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