Is Cleaning Fruit with Baking Soda or Vinegar Really Necessary?

In a viral TikTok video, fitness influencer Jeffrey Harris dumps strawberries, blueberries, and grapes into bowls. He fills the bowls with water and tops them off with a mix of apple cider vinegar and baking soda. A quick cut later, the water is so brown it makes him grimace. That’s probably the moment when more than 1 million people hit the like button and added “start cleaning fruit with baking soda and vinegar” to their to-do lists. But do those extra steps really help remove more dirt and pesticides, or is it just a social media trend? 

To find out, we spoke with Meta Dunn, a food safety consultant who has worked with The FruitGuys for over ten years. She’s a certified Preventive Controls Qualified Individual (PCQI) under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) and has also completed the Produce Safety Alliance (PSA) training on regulatory requirements for growing fresh produce. 

The Best Way to Wash Produce

According to Meta, this is the best way to wash produce at home or in the office. It’s quick and easy and will leave you with clean, flavorful fruits and vegetables. 

To clean your produce, DO…

• Wash your hands and kitchen tools first
• Hold the produce in your hands or place it in a colander
• Rinse it under cool, running water
• Scrub it with a soft brush if needed

Meta’s tips line up with the United States Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) recommendations for cleaning fruits and vegetables. 

Produce Washing Methods to Avoid

Meta also shared a few common produce-washing mistakes to avoid. 

To clean your produce, DON’T…

• Place it directly in the sink 
• Soak or rinse it excessively
• Rinse it with hot water
• Use store-bought produce wash

Making any of these common mistakes could actually introduce more bacteria to your produce. Sinks—where we wash our hands and raw meat—can be breeding grounds for pathogens unless they’re meticulously cleaned. And either soaking produce for more than a minute or two or rinsing in hot water can invite bacteria in. 

“The skins of fruits and vegetables are actually kind of like our skin,” Meta said. “They have pores that open up and start absorbing [in warm or wet conditions], which could contribute to a high microbial content because you don’t know what’s in your sink, your water, or the bowl that you’re using.” 

It’s best to avoid produce washes, too, because they’re not well-regulated in the US. 

“There’s no actual testing going on with these products to verify the safety of them and make sure they’re not doing more harm than good,” Meta said. “Studies also suggest produce washes aren’t significantly more effective than plain water for removing microbes or pesticides, so why waste money and contribute to the unnecessary consumption of resources?”

The Verdict on Cleaning Fruit with Baking Soda and Vinegar

You may have noticed that vinegar and baking soda didn’t make either of Meta’s lists. That’s because the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has strict standards for pesticide residue on locally grown and imported crops. Combined with the right washing method, Meta said, these are sufficient to protect our health—but vinegar and baking soda are safe options for people who want to go the extra mile to clean their produce. 

“Using straight vinegar or baking soda can be helpful, but it may leave a little bit of lingering flavor on your produce,” she explained. “It’s not harmful to your body.”

Farmer Byron Albano of Cuyama Orchards, a family-run organic apple farm, takes pride in the fact that tests of the farm’s fruit consistently show no detectable pesticide residues, down to a 1 part per billion testing limit. Albano suggested that vinegar could be a good option for customers worried about coatings and residues on their fruit.

“I would say for produce that you have any concerns with, a vinegar wash, or aggressive wash with a fruit brush is probably warranted,” he told The FruitGuys. (Side note: Byron’s family grows delicious apples, and we often add them to our organic fruit boxes.)

A Quick Look at the Science of Produce Washing

Several studies have shown that baking soda and vinegar can help reduce different types of contamination on specific fruits and vegetables. Here’s a quick look at a few of them.

Reducing Listeria on Lettuce, Broccoli, Apples, and Tomatoes

A 2005 study conducted at Tennessee State University investigated different methods of cleaning lettuce, broccoli, apples, and tomatoes that were purposefully contaminated with listeria. Researchers compared a wide variety of methods including soaking produce in tap water for two minutes, using a solution of veggie wash, vinegar, or baking soda, rinsing under tap water, rinsing and scrubbing under tap water, and more. The results varied depending on the type of produce. Ultimately, researchers concluded that rinsing and brushing under running water was the most effective method overall.

Reducing E. coli, Listeria, and Salmonella on Tomatoes, Broccoli, Cantaloupe, Lettuce, Spinach, and Green Onions

Following the 2005 Tennessee State study, a 2012 study conducted at the University of Georgia also investigated a wide range of washing methods—including ozone, commercial vegetable wash, chlorine bleach, and more. It found that while results for specific produce items varied, “none produced significantly greater reductions than tap water rinse for all tested items.”

Preventing Mold on Strawberries

A 2015 study by researchers at Tuskegee University in Alabama aimed at preventing mold in strawberries compared the effects of washing with sterile water, white vinegar, crude lemon juice extract, essential oil, or a combination. It found that all of the solutions were more effective than sterile water at preventing mold, and recommended a combination of vinegar, lemon juice extract, and essential oil.

Reducing Pesticide on Oranges

A 2021 study out of Turkey compared the effectiveness of washing oranges with tap water, sodium carbonate, sodium chloride, acetic acid, apple cider, and grape vinegar. It found that all of the options helped reduce pesticides, but cleaning fruit with baking soda and tap water was the most effective. 

It’s tricky to generalize studies like these since they focus on such specific types of produce and target different kinds of contamination. But as Meta said, vinegar and baking soda may help more than they hurt.

If You Really Want to Reduce Pesticides, Buy Organic

If a farmer sprays their produce with pesticides, it’s likely impossible to entirely wash them away. Instead, your best bet is to buy produce from a certified organic farmer or a farmer who isn’t certified but uses organic practices. 

Certified organic farmers can’t use most synthetic pesticides, and their produce typically has lower levels of residue than conventionally farmed options. (For the nitty gritty on organic certification, check out our article “What Does Organic Mean?”)

Certified organic farmer Byron Albano is so confident in the safety of his produce that sometimes he doesn’t wash it at all. 

“I like to wipe our apples on my jeans, or on my shirt, depending on which shirt it is, and how clean my jeans are,” he said. “But as an organic apple grower, I’m not too worried about what is on them that won’t just wipe off, or (better) rinse off with fresh cold water. The waxy cuticle on the skin is natural, and there’s nothing we spray on them, or do to them after harvest, that should require more than a quick rinse.”

If you’re concerned about pesticides, choose organically grown fruit for your home or office when you can and rinse it under cool, running water before you eat it. You can add a quick soak in vinegar and/or baking soda solution to your routine if you’d like to take extra care. 

Produce Washing FAQs

1. What is the best way to wash produce? 

First, wash your hands. Then hold the produce or place it in a collider, and rinse it under cool running water. Use a soft brush if needed to remove stubborn dirt from firm fruits and vegetables, like potatoes. 

2. Is it better to wash produce with vinegar or baking soda?

Cleaning fruit with baking soda or vinegar may help reduce pesticides and/or prevent mold. However, the FDA recommends simply rinsing your produce under running water. 

3. Is it better to wash strawberries with vinegar or baking soda?

It’s best to wash your strawberries with cool running water just before you eat them. If you want to wash your berries days in advance, one study found that a combination of vinegar, lemon juice extract, and essential oil is best to prevent mold. If you’re concerned about pesticides, choose organically grown strawberries when you can. 

4. How should I wash vegetables to remove pesticides?

The FDA recommends rinsing your produce under running water to remove pesticides. If you’d like to go the extra mile, adding a quick soak in a baking soda solution to your rinsing routine may help reduce pesticides in some fruits, like oranges.