Pre-Washed Spinach May Not Be So Clean
- 9 years ago
A research team studying pre-washed spinach has found that, because of the leaf’s uneven surface, some areas are not exposed to high enough concentrations of the disinfecting solution. This leaves some bacteria to multiply and potentially spread.
Pre-washed bagged greens are convenient, but they may not be as clean as you'd expect.
According to recently presented research, almost 15 percent of a baby spinach leaf’s surface does not get exposed to high enough concentrations of the commercial disinfecting solution used to wash it.
This unevenness is due to the numerous bumps, curves, and depressions on the leaf itself.
In fact, the team found that as much as 90 percent of the bacteria that was already present survived after being rinsed with a similarly weak bleach rinse.
And because some bacteria like E. coli and salmonella remain, they can
Pre-washed bagged greens are convenient, but they may not be as clean as you'd expect.
According to recently presented research, almost 15 percent of a baby spinach leaf’s surface does not get exposed to high enough concentrations of the commercial disinfecting solution used to wash it.
This unevenness is due to the numerous bumps, curves, and depressions on the leaf itself.
In fact, the team found that as much as 90 percent of the bacteria that was already present survived after being rinsed with a similarly weak bleach rinse.
And because some bacteria like E. coli and salmonella remain, they can