To not wash my fruit and veg before cooking/eating?

[AmserGwin]

Inspired by the bin thread. How many of you actually wash your fruit and/or veg before eating or cooking it? I never have, do people really do this?

"the amount of bacteria found in soli nowadays"

You do realise that bacteria is a good thing in soils, if it wasn't there, nothing would grow!

I try and always wash my fruit as it is covered in pesticides and also dirty from travelling a long way. You don't know what flies are pooping onto it. Veg are usually peeled, however, it is my goal for 2017 to go as organic as possible because I'm currently a little freaked out at all the chemicals being sprayed onto everything and fed to everything. They might not make you sick now but that's not to say they aren't making you sick in the future. There's a cheery note for you!

I really don't see how rinsing something under cold water is going to get rid of pesticides and shit!

So use more than just cold water then!

Ok Marmite, calm down

Oh ffs since when was e-coli good for you?
There are many types of E. coli, and most of them are harmless. But some can cause bloody diarrhea. Some strains of E. coli bacteria may also cause severe anemia or kidney failure, which can lead to death.

Posted too soon before editing.

Yes many bacreria are ok but some arent why risk it with small kids never mind yourself?

I'm shocked! I wash all fruit, veg and salad. Thesleepystorm - I am glad that my DC are too old (much too old) for soft play now, I would be having the vapours. The shopping centre near to me has Zorb balls for kids in the summer. Thank goodness they weren't around in my DC days! The thought of all that snot and mucus etc, plus the high temperatures...

Yep alway do (and kids of tin's etc before opening them) best explained by nhs guide page
"Advice on storing, washing and preparing fruit and vegetables to prevent food poisoning, including E. coli.
It is important to wash all fruit and vegetables before you eat them to ensure they are clean and safe to eat."

Also I hate the dusty taste to unwashed fruit can always tell if it's been washed

*lids haha not kids!

If MIL is in sight, always. Otherwise, never.

I never used to wash any fruit or vegetables until I fell pregnant and developed a horrible case of anxiety over the risk of contracting listeria and toxoplasmosis. Now I give everything the once over unless it's being peeled. In all my 33 years, however, I have never had food poisoning or a tummy bug so do wonder whether growing up in family who also didn't really bother washing fruit and veg, has given me a strong immune system against a lot of nasties. Mind you, if I fell pregnant again tomorrow I would bet you my life's savings I would be back on the washing and scrubbing routine again!

Organic food can also have pesticides, but it is more strict on what makes up the pesticides. I buy mostly organic and always wash. I don't mind a bit of mud and dirt, but don't want random chemicals inside me. I assed everyone did and only realised recently that it seems not many people rinse.

*assumed!!!

I am completely shocked at the posters who don't wash the fruit and veg.

Have you never heard of the bacteria from manure or even the filthy hands of pickers who've used the loo ? And considering lots of fruit comes from overseas the bugs are ones we aren't used to. Things like grapes get covered in fruit flies in transit and also the pesticides used on them are NOT GOOD.

Even the nice young men in Waitrose who stack the shelves may have faeces on their hands from the loos.

No wonder people have upset stomachs.

Never unless it's actually muddy. Also never get upset tummy. And also pick up food off the floor and eat it. I was amazed once to see a friend's kids drop sweets on the floor indoors, and without being told to, pick them up and put them in the bin. My kids constantly eat food they've dropped on the floor and thought these kids were insane :-)

I always wash fruit and veg; have you seen how much dirt comes off something like a bunch of grapes? Try putting them into a white bowl of cold water and look! Also, you can get hep A through unwashed fruit and veg ~ especially those grown in or near to soil that is contaminated and you may never know if it is or not.

In recent years, fresh produce, such as salads, fresh fruits and vegetables, has increasingly been implicated in foodborne outbreaks of hepatitis A. These products are likely to be consumed raw or lightly cooked, and can become contaminated with faecal matter at almost any point during growing, harvesting, transport and packing.

Uggggghhhh! So many people not washing their fruit and veg!

Think of all the pesticides and fertiliser in the fields, plus dead insects and mouse droppings, not to mention people handling them and coughing on them at the farm or in the supermarket! I'm no clean freak, but it takes seconds to wash a piece of fruit or veg.

Just yuckkkkkk!

I always rinse mine. Never used to but got ecoli a couple of years ago and was ill for almost a month so ultra cautious now.

Never have. Never will.

I am never ill and neither are 4 dcs. We are a sturdy bunch because of it!

Does cold water actually wash away pesticides??

No wonder people have upset stomachs

I don't get upset stomachs, nor does anyone in my household. I never bother washing fruit and vegetables. In over 35 years of working I've never had more than 2 days consecutive sick leave at any time and even then very rarely and related to migraines, never stomach upsets.

I don't know if the fact I grew up drinking unpasteurised milk has anything to do with my iron constitution, possibly.

Who can say whether small amounts of pest or herbicides over a lifetime isn't contributing to the high risk of dying of cancer in old age. Or any other debilitating disease of old age.

Bakeoff There would be no WORLD without bacteria , everything is bacteria !!!!!!! Most are benign but some aren't.

I mostly don't bother unless there is visible debris. Cold water will remove barely anything and I don't see the sense in washing something in chemicals to remove, er, chemicals.

The vast majority of the fruit and veg I eat either gets peeled or cooked (or both) which I think is sufficiently effective at cleaning, sterilising and/or denaturing.

Yes there is a miniscule risk of e.coli but it won't be mitigated by rinsing in water, and if there was a fatal outbreak originating from supermarket produce it would make the news fairly quickly... which it doesn't.