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Frequently Asked Question

Is there any governing body controlling what goes into fruit and vegetable washes, such, as the Food and Drug Administration or FDA?

• Pesticides
• Bacteria
• Handling and Soil Contamination, nematodes, animal droppings, and Human Contamination:

Pesticides:
Answer: Some pesticides used on crops are very persistent in the environment. These chemicals are designed to withstand sun and rain decomposition in order to save money by reducing the number of applications necessary. The most persistent are the organochlorines. They are also the most bioaccumulative, meaning they are fat soluble and potentially take up residence in our bodies. Some organochlorines such as DDT, no longer used in the US, have been found in adipose breast tissue of humans as much as 20 years after its ban. Endosulfan is an organochlorine still in use in the US. The produce imported from other countries is not subject to the restrictions on pesticide usage. There is no information available on pesticide use in some countries, further studies may show that the use of US banned pesticides is still ongoing in other produce growing nations.  Mom’s Veggiewash is a mild surfactant which has been specially formulated to dissolve and remove pesticide residues from the skin of fruits and vegetables. Studies have shown it removes at least 94% of oil-based chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticide residue from produce.

Literature cited:

(1) Van Middelem, C.H. "Fate and Persistence of Pesticides", American Chemical Society, Washington, D.C. 1970

Bacteria:
Answer: Recent media coverage has highlighted the problem associated with bacterial contamination of raw fruits such as strawberries and raspberries. Growing concern for the safety of the food we eat has forced grocery stores to post food handling and washing instructions. During the recent strawberry alert many grocery stores posted signs instructing the consumer to rinse berries thoroughly under running water. It is documented that washing with a surfactant and water is far more effective at reducing surface bacteria and spore from fungus and mold than water alone. Mom's Veggiewash helps wash away bacteria, it does not kill it.  Any vegetable wash that claims to kill bacteria should be classified as a pesticide.  We don't recommend washing you fruits and veggies with a pesticide. Click her to see related Q&A for pesticides and the EPA.

Handling and Soil Contaminants, Nematodes, Animal Droppings, Human Contamination:
Answer: Fruits and vegetables can be handled many times before reaching your home.  Health officials have known for years that washing your hands numerous times in a day can help reduce the risk of infection.  Using Veggiewash is just like washing your hands before eating. Numerous contaminants can end up on your fruits and vegetables, nematodes are one such classification of creatures which can be found and includes pinworms and their eggs, tapeworm, and other parasites. They can be found in soil and passed from humans as well. Anyone who’s ever worked a summer job picking in the fields, in a restaurant, bakery or packing plant, cannery, or any food handling industry can attest to the unspeakable conditions to which the food can be subject at times, produce included.

2.

Question: What kinds of fruits and vegetables should be washed?

Answer: The benefits of washing with Mom's Veggiewash over water-only washing are obvious for vegetables and fruits which are not peeled before eating such as leafy greens and broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower, but fruits such as oranges and bananas which are normally peeled before eating, should be "shampooed" as well. The fungicides and fumigants sprayed in the packaging, contaminants from packing, shipping, and storage of produce are still present in significant amounts and transfer to the hands of children and adults when peeling the fruit, and then to the mouth. Therefore it is recommended to wash the peel, skin or rind of the following even though the skin is generally not eaten:

3.

Question: How Should Vegetables and Fruits Be Washed?

Small and/or Sensitive Fruits and Vegetables:
Examples: strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, grapes,cherry tomatoes

Answer: Place in colander, spray with full strength veggie wash.  Shake the colander to move the fruit around making sure it is all sprayed. Let it sit for a few seconds then douse in bowl of cool water. Repeat, and then rinse in running water through the colander, moving fruit around to insure proper rinsing.

Leafy Vegetables:
Answer: Break apart head of lettuce or spinach. Spray each leaf and massage holding leaf between fingers and thumb, (as if gesturing for money). Do the entire leaf and then rinse under running water, still massaging as if gesturing for more money, until the slippery feel washes away. Allow to drain in colander.

Note: Outer leaves have more pesticide residue than inner leaves. They are older and have been in the field longer.

Wax coated and other fruits and vegetables:
Examples: cucumbers, apples, bell peppers, zucchini, carrots, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, string beans, snow pea pods, okra, eggplant,  squashes, asparagus, tomatoes

Answer: Use warm water, veggie wash and vegetable brush. Douse in warm water for a few seconds to soften the wax, spray veggie wash, full strength directly on the produce. Brush briskly. Rinse under lukewarm running water. Test to see that all wax is removed by running under cold water and drying lightly with a clean dish towel. If a scale forms or a dusty powder is visible on the peel, then a residue of wax exists. The wax, dried out and shrunken, due to the washing, becomes visible. Repeat the entire procedure to ensure complete removal.

Note: Some resins are very persistent and are very difficult to remove or applied in a thick coat.  For these cases a second washing is recommended, even though the packaging may say the resin is harmless to ingest, it is probably acting as adhesive for other contaminants imbedded in the resin, or causing pesticide residues to adhere to the produce.

4.

    Question: What is Mom's Veggiewash made of?

Answer: Mom's Veggiewash is a proprietary formula of  safe non-toxic inert  liquid surfactants that contain no animal products.  Mom's Veggiewash is mild to the skin, biodegradable, contains no perfumes, preservatives, or colorants.   For those allergic to casein, Mom's Veggiewash does not contain hyperallergenic corn or its derivatives.  Mom's Veggiewash's formula avoids using ingredients that are suspected of causing negative health effects; the following surfactants have been avoided: sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), cocamide,  diethylamines (DEA), triethylamines (TEA), and synthetic acetates.  Mom's Veggiewash rinses clean from all foods and is the result of over 10 years of research in the areas of food production and health.  Mom's Veggiewash was developed by Charle-Pan  Rockwell Dawson, chemist, clean food activist, and mother of three; it is the optimal treatment for fresh produce on the market.

5. 

   Question: How effective is Mom's Veggiewash?

Answer: When organically grown produce is not available, pesticide residue can be removed from commercially grown fruits and vegetables using Mom’s Veggiewash.   Incidental contaminants from handling, bacteria, also soil, animal droppings waxes, and adhesives from labeling may be removed using Mom’s Veggiewash. Mom’s Veggiewash is a mild surfactant which has been specially formulated to dissolve and remove pesticide residues from the skin of fruits and vegetables. Studies have shown it removes at least 94% of oil-based chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticide residue from produce.

Mom's Veggiewash Tested On the Toughest Pesticide

Pesticide usage involves four main classes of compounds, organophosphates (OP’s), organochlorines (OC’s), carbamates and pyrethroids. The most bioaccumulative, environmentally persistent, and least soluble of all the pesticides are the organochlorines. Therefore Endosulfan, an organochlorine, was chosen to do the testing for Mom's Veggiewash efficacy. Fruit and vegetable washing with Mom’s showed an overall reduction in Endosulfan by approximately 94%.

Since we know that Endosulfan, the most difficult residue to remove, showed such vast reductions, we are assured that the other more soluble residues will be removed even more completely with Mom’s Veggiewash.  Endosulfan and all the lesser persistent compounds are found on practically every vegetable and fruit you eat.  One such example of many is the use of these compounds on the United States Broccoli crop.  Table 1 shows the typical application of such chemical compounds during the 1992 crop season. 

Table 1. Estimated Insecticide Usage on the National Broccoli Crop of 1992. 

6.

    Question: Why is Mom's Veggiewash Unique?

Answer: Mom's Veggiewash is a proprietary blend of non-toxic inert liquid surfactants that contain no animal products.  It is mild to the skin, biodegradable, contains no perfumes, colorants, and rinses clean. 

Mom's Veggiewash is uniquely formulated and tested to provide the highest quality fruit and vegetable wash available:  The following three attributes are unique to Mom's Veggiewash:

• Mom's Veggiewash was proven effective on the most bioaccumulative, environmentally persistent, and least soluble of all the pesticides - organochlorines; and

• Contains no sodium lauryl sulfate, Cocamide DEA or any diethylamines or triethylamines; and

• For those allergic to casein, Mom's Veggiewash does not contain hyperallergenic corn or its derivatives.

Mom's Veggiewash is the result of over 10 years of research in the areas of food production and health.  Mom's Veggiewash was developed by Charle-Pan  Dawson, chemist, clean food activist, and mother of three, it is the optimal treatment for fresh produce.

7.

Question: Some vegetable washes claim to kill bacteria, why doesn’t Mom’s claim to kill bacteria? Isn’t it better if it kills bacteria ?

Answer: Mom’s Veggiewash does not kill bacteria. It helps remove all residues including dirt, oils, pesticide residues, and bacteria, by dissolving and washing them away.  Mom’s Veggiewash is primarily a surfactant or wetting agent.  All soaps are surfactants or wetting agents. Surfactants make water wetter. Surfactants break the electrostatic attractions between residues and the surface of the vegetable or fruit allowing water to dissolve and carry away the residues.

I would not want to wash my fruits and vegetables with anything that can kill bacteria. If it kills bacteria it may harm the friendly bacteria of the intestines if small amounts are ingested or the healthy bacteria on the skin. I would not trust any vegetable wash that says it kills anything.

Answer: At this time the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) has a section on washing produce for the purposes of commercial food processing, but does not have any regulations on vegetable washes  for removing residues, or what goes into making them. They do regulate pesticides and bacteriacides. Anything claiming to kill bacteria or germs would be classified as a pesticide or bacteriacide.

 When I was in the early formulation stages for Mom's Veggiewash I had studied the EPA CFRs. I found that we were not in a controlled category. In other words there were no regulations for fruit and vegetable washes of this type as long as we didn't claim to be a bacteriacide. Under food processing there was a regulation for the use of caustic soda or lye when stripping potato peels and "cleaning" other vegetables for commercial food processing. The section also explains the use of chlorinated rinses for the purposes of washing commercially processed foods and puts limits on the concentration of chlorine that may be used.

But there were and still are no regulations governing the formulation of a product for the simple washing of fresh produce to remove residues. I was astonished. This meant that anyone could formulate a vegetable wash using all manner of bad ingredients. I have looked into the ones that have come on the market since and have seen some vegetable washes with ingredients that I would not want to wash my hands with, let alone my fruits and vegetables! Mom’s Veggiewash is a pure liquid soap. It is safe, but I don’t say that it is edible because some silly person might drink a bottle of it and try to prove me wrong. Too much of anything will make you sick. So please don’t drink it. Rinse it off your fresh produce with clean lukewarm or cool water.

Question:  Does the EPA investigate Vegetable Wash manufacturers to make sure they make no claims to kill bacteria?

Answer: Yes. We have already undergone EPA scrutiny. There were two issues associated with the EPA review of Mom's Veggiewash:

1) Is the fruit and vegetable wash claiming to kill bacteria or is it claiming to remove bacteria?

2) If Mom's Veggiewash is not claiming to be a bacteriacide or pesticide, does this fruit and vegetable wash fall under any other regulation or CFR ?

I was contacted by an EPA agent from the Albany NY region. He had been assigned to this task months before and was gradually making his way through the list of vegetable washes out on the market. He had already printed out everything from my website , www.veggiewash.com and had it in a folder. I met with him and he asked me to submit all the literature we use in marketing to make a determination on whether or not we were in violation of any EPA Federal Code.

I submitted all information concerning our product, Mom's Veggiewash, to the EPA representative. He assured me that it looked as though we were not in violation but would have to run it through the system anyway. I was happy to have the product cleared by the EPA, so I waited patiently. About four months later I received a letter from the EPA regional office stating that the Mom’s Veggiewash product literature was not making any claims that would force the EPA to classify the product as a bacteriacide or pesticide, and therefore it was not considered to be regulated under the CFR. We were free to continue manufacturing and selling Mom's Veggiewash, using the marketing literature we had developed.

To this day we have never made any claims as to Mom’s being a bacteriacide.  Mom’s Veggiewash is a liquid surfactant. (Surface actant) It acts on the surface to loosen residue that is held on to the produce by electric charge (see surfactants).  Much like washing your hands with soap and water, Mom's Veggiewash removes dirt, nematode eggs, pesticide and bacterial residues from whatever you wash it with, much better than water-washing alone, because it is basically liquid soap in a bottle.

If anything changes in the EPA CFR and new regulations are developed, we will make sure we comply with the regulations.

No, in fact some pesticide usage has increased in the US. Here are the latest updates for head lettuce from the USDA

2002 USDA Chemical Usage Update.txt