Do you disinfect your groceries? How do you do it?

[mellowyellowgirl]

Reading one of the other threads I've realised people disinfect their groceries.

Makes total sense!

I don't..... I wonder if I should start....

I'm feeling a bit "in for a penny, in for a pound now". Probably too late to bother.

 

[kenny]

I don't disinfect food itself.
For the packaging for non-produce items I do the following:

Using disposable gloves for this single task, I place many things where they can remain untouched, often in the garage, for 72 hours, even in the fridge.
Then I discard those gloves.
They're only 5 cents each.

I do not touch the cash that I receive ...
I ask the cashier to place it directly into a new fold-top sandwich bag which is also left untouched for 72 hours.

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

I don't disinfect food itself.
For the packaging for non-produce items I do the following:

Using disposable gloves for this single task, I place many things where they can remain untouched, often in the garage, for 72 hours, even in the fridge.
Then I discard those gloves.
They're only 5 cents each.

I do not touch the cash that I receive ...
I ask the cashier to place it directly into a new fold-top sandwich bag which is also left untouched for 72 hours.

That sounds really easy!!!

I think I've seen too many memes and I keep imagining a vat of water which is a nightmare to deal with!

 

[hedgehog93]

Reading one of the other threads I've realised people disinfect their groceries.

Makes total sense!

I don't..... I wonder if I should start....

I'm feeling a bit "in for a penny, in for a pound now". Probably too late to bother.

Was I that person!

We use a vinegar and water mix on fruit and vegetables, and then clean again with water and then leave to sun for a few hours. Or if it’s vegetables we know we’re boiling anyway, we’ll boil it straight away.

Meat is usually packaged for us so we will semi-blanche the meat if we’re freezing, or we’ll get rid of the packaging outside and transfer to a plate.

For bread we flip it upside down onto a clean plastic bag and always toast before eating.

For biscuits and packaged non-melty snacks we’ll wipe it down with a dishwash mix and leave out in the sun for a day or two. Ditto bags of rice and flour. Alcohol also.

Essentially no packaging touches anything that can’t be wiped down/washed, and no food kept in original packaging. For non packaged food, no consumption without either boiling, heat, or washing. I think it’s overkill, but hey if he’s happy to do it .

We do this all outside in the garden, would be a nightmare inside.

 

[kenny]

I only shop for produce right when the store opens.

That way fewer customers have touched, coughed, or sneezed on it.

Not 100% perfect, but safer than shopping later in the day.

 

[1ofakind]

I wash my hands after handling things. It’s still the simplest and most effective defense...along with not touching your face. The chances of catching this from packaging seem extremely low. Most household cleaners require prolonged contact to kill the virus, vinegar is ineffective. If I felt like I needed further protection I’d just leave groceries/packages in a bag in the mud room for a while.

 

[voce]

I disinfect groceries by cooking. It's homemade these days. Bye bye store made pastries and bread. No thanks, salad and sushi, I'm not eating anything raw these days unless I harvested it myself from the garden. Exception is fruit.

Fruit gets to sit in their own quarantine room with sunlight for as many days as possible before consumption, at least 72 hours.

 

[GliderPoss]

I'll be honest...somehow it never occurred to me to clean my groceries! I wash fruit & veg generally via quick rinse under the tap but otherwise nothing special...

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I tired washing everything in a a sink of hot soapy dish water
its exhusting
Then i read someone in officialdom said to only wash fruit in plain water like normal

Im just washing my hands and getting rid of excess packaging

 

[beatricecrummles]

Yes, it is important you disinfect, part of it is disinfecting canned goods and some solid and sealed stuff, wipe them with an antiseptic wet tissue. And wash hands thoroughly.

 

[yssie]

I always have. No coronavirus changes to our routine!

Dairy bottles and all produce that can (fruit, veggies, roots) gets a quick soap scrub. I keep a mini (low-power!) hairdryer by the sink to dry things off so they don't mould... I use it to dry my sparklies too

Leaves, herbs, floret foods like broccoli and cauliflower - not much you can do. Just rinse well before using.

Boxes, containers, tins, plastic packaging all get wiped down. I'll transfer some things to my own canisters - cereal, pasta, eggs, dried fruit and nuts, grains, oats... But that's mostly because mine stay airtight. If I can wipe or wash the exterior I'm fine with it.

Our cleaning help washes the refrigerators and larder once a month. I guess that's me this month

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

Cold does prolong the life of the virus, heat and sun disinfects. So I leave packages out in the sun when the products inside can take it. Produce that goes into the fridge is washed before storage and before I'm using it. I wear disposable gloves.
Basic precautions. People have already harmed themselves by ingesting too much bleach when they soaked their food in it here in France .
So we've had a lot of information about this in the media (virologists explaining what makes sense and what doesn't)

vinegar is ineffective

This is not accurate. 1% of malt vinegar in water is ineffective. 10% in water reduces viral infectivity "These results also indicate that whilst vinegar and detergent disrupt the viral envelope proteins reducing infectivity, only bleach disrupts the viral genome."


This study was conducted for H1N1, but given as an example how virologists advise to clean effectively for Corona virus as well.

Effectiveness of Common Household Cleaning Agents in Reducing the Viability of Human Influenza A/H1N1 - PMC

In the event of an influenza pandemic, the majority of people infected will be nursed at home. It is therefore important to determine simple methods for limiting the spread of the virus within the home. The purpose of this work was to test a ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

So for food items vinegar solution is the preferred washing agent, since contrary to detergent (equally effective, but ingestion not advised) and bleach (more effective but harmful to the human body) it is edible.

 

[MarionC]

Cell biologist here.
I am opposed to the “water is enough” theory. Otherwise we would be told to just rinse our hands in water. And think of all the people who may have handled the vegetables before you got them.
I wipe down packaged food with an alcohol/water cleaning product, and wash oranges and apples in hot soapy water. I don’t buy any vegetables that can’t be cooked, and even sauté lettuce. The idea that someone with the virus, working in the field, has coughed on my lettuce....Every day I see people harvesting vegetables in the fields standing shoulder to shoulder.

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

Cell biologist here.
I am opposed to the “water is enough” theory. Otherwise we would be told to just rinse our hands in water. And think of all the people who may have handled the vegetables before you got them.
I wipe down packaged food with an alcohol/water cleaning product, and wash oranges and apples in hot soapy water. I don’t buy any vegetables that can’t be cooked, and even sauté lettuce. The idea that someone with the virus, working in the field, has coughed on my lettuce....Every day I see people harvesting vegetables in the fields standing shoulder to shoulder.

Bonjour @Jimmianne

Do you think detergent works better than vinegar?
I loathe the taste of soap and the study I linked above indicates that vinegar works as well.
Plus the dressing of half vinegar and oil is supposed to be effective as well. I dont eat lettuce fresh out if the shop. I try to get the potted ones and those are ok after a few days anyways.


(I'm from a long line of germaphobes , , but try to be reasonable and avoid biocides)

 

[MarionC]

Bonjour @Jimmianne

Do you think detergent works better than vinegar?
I loathe the taste of soap and the study I linked above indicates that vinegar works as well.
Plus the dressing of half vinegar and oil is supposed to be effective as well. I dont eat lettuce fresh out if the shop. I try to get the potted ones and those are ok after a few days anyways.


(I'm from a long line of germaphobes , , but try to be reasonable and avoid biocides)

Bonjour kipari, ça va?

I’m sure acedic acid would deactivate the virus, but I believe vinegar may be too dilute to do the job. Perhaps we can do some further research. I’ll check out the link.
I’m pretty germaphobic myself, but get weary and probably am not as diligent as could be. I can’t keep track of what touched what, etc etc...like I just realized that the potted plants I bought at Carrefour this week could’ve had contamination. (((Sigh)))
Wake me up when it’s over. Lol

 

[Dancing Fire]

I don’t buy any vegetables that can’t be cooked, and even sauté lettuce. The idea that someone with the virus, working in the field, has coughed on my lettuce....Every day I see people harvesting vegetables in the fields standing shoulder to shoulder.

The pesticides use in farming will kill any viruses.

 

[MarionC]

The pesticides use in farming will kill any viruses.

Hm-m...another reason to drink more wine.

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

Can stomach acid kill the virus?

 

[Dancing Fire]

Hm-m...another reason to drink more wine.

But pesticides will cause cancer, so you'll die either way...

 

[MarionC]

But pesticides will cause cancer, so you'll die either way...

Either way or another way. I think that’s how it works. Who came up with this disturbing plan??!!

 

[Dancing Fire]

Can stomach acid kill the virus?

No but you can drink a 1/2 cup of Clorox ...

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

Can stomach acid kill the virus?

Yes it does completely

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

No but you can drink a 1/2 cup of Clorox ...

People are doing this in the US and France.. Google it... Not that ICU doctors need more work ATM

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

Can stomach acid kill the virus?

To be clear: the contamination happens via the mucous tissues in mouth, nose, eyes.

 

[donnabrsd]

Pre-coronavirus - unload everything from my vehicle onto a table in my garage; put dry foods in pantry; wash dairy containers before placing in fridge; placed other sealed packaged cold items directly in fridge; placed frozen bags directly in freezer; rinsed all fruits in water; rinsed (peeled, sliced, quartered, rinsed again) carrots; rinsed (peeled & sliced) cucumbers; removed outer layers of lettuce and celery and rinsed; transferred most to my own containers.

Post-coronavirus - after unloading onto table in garage, I wipe (or dispose of) the outer of each package, bag, container with an alcohol wipe and place on a different table (then continue with my regular routine). I also now add a splash of bleach to my fruit bath and an additional rinse. I have a friend who has always bathed her fruits in bleach so that is where I got that idea.

Not too much of a change for me.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

I'll be the odd one out, we don't do anything different than before with one exception. Now we try to buy bagged produce instead of loose, that way perhaps less hands have touched it. That's it.

 

[missy]

I shared this in another thread. An internist shared this with her patients. Let me find it. BRB.
Here is what she sent her patients and what she wrote below.

Is It Safe to Grocery Shop? Answers to Your Coronavirus Food Safety Questions

First of all, YES! Also, no, we are not going to run out of food.

www.thekitchn.com

"I tried to buy enough food so that I don’t have to shop for 2-3 weeks. When I do have to get something, I wash and dry all produce immediately, put it in a clean bag, then wash hands and disinfect the countertops and sink. I disinfect all packaging and cans, just to be on the safe side."

 

[OoohShiny]

Before Coronavirus - buy food, take food home, put food on shelf / in fridge.

After Coronavirus - buy food, take food home, put food on shelf / in fridge.


Yesterday I even bought some eccles cakes from the bakery section and ate one straight out of the box in the car


FWIW my risk tolerance is quite high generally

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

Before Coronavirus - buy food, take food home, put food on shelf / in fridge.

After Coronavirus - buy food, take food home, put food on shelf / in fridge.


Yesterday I even bought some eccles cakes from the bakery section and ate one straight out of the box in the car


FWIW my risk tolerance is quite high generally

Between you and me we're probably tempting fate

Eating refrigerated cakes from a patisserie right now!

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

@hedgehog93 yes it was you that got me thinking!