Produce Washes to Retard Mold and Remove Pesticides

Back in Missouri, about ¼ acre of our property was dedicated to growing berries—strawberries, blackberries, boysenberries, and raspberries.  I had tried blueberries and failed.  I grew all we needed for our family for fresh eating, canning, and freezing to be enjoyed later in the year.  I didn’t use pesticides and processed everything quickly so I had no troubles with spoilage. 

Here, I’m still working on growing more berries, but it will take some time.  Meanwhile, I’m blessed to have a produce company that gets phenomenal deals on berries a few times a year.  Two years ago, we got organic blueberries from Peru, the absolute best I’ve ever had in my life.  The week before Thanksgiving it was flats of US-grown raspberries for $5.  Can’t go wrong with that, except that one reason they’re so cheap is that they were starting to spoil.  I normally limit my berry purchases not because of the cost but due to my inability to process the berries quickly enough.  It had never occurred to me that using a wash could give me an extra day or more to get them all preserved.

Of course, I’d seen produce washes sold in the grocery stores, ridiculously overpriced.  Rinsing my produce in the kitchen sink would have to suffice.  An article at Martha Stewart’s website suggested making a simple solution at home.  Duh.  It was focused on cleaning blueberries, but the rinse recipes can be used with any produce.

Vinegar Rinse

3 parts cold water

1 part vinegar*

 

Combine the water and vinegar in a large bowl.  Add the produce and let soak for 5-10 minutes.  Gently agitate the produce to loosen debris.  Rinse thoroughly with cold water to remove any vinegar and drain.  Dry completely on a clean towel before refrigerating.

Plain white distilled vinegar is best.  Its acidity inhibits bacterial growth and as a bonus breaks down some pesticides as well. 

 

Baking Soda Rinse

2 cups cold water

1 teaspoon baking soda

 

In medium bowl, combine the water and baking soda, stirring until the latter is completely dissolved.  Add the produce and soak for 5-10 minutes.  (Do not soak for more than 15 minutes, as the baking soda will start to degrade the skin and flavor will be lost in the soaking solution.)  Rinse thoroughly to remove traces of baking soda.  Dry completely on a clean dish towel before refrigerating. 

 

Owing to its alkalinity, baking soda neutralizes bacteria.  Unfortunately, it leaves behind a bitter residue if not rinsed thoroughly. 

 

Which to use?  Water alone isn’t effective in eliminating bacteria, mold, or pesticides, while baking soda and vinegar are.[1] [2] Each of these is effective against different pathogens and helps extend the shelf life.  If I had a lot of berries to process, I’d probably use both separately.  Baking soda and vinegar will react with each other and you risk not eliminating any pathogens if you try combining them.

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[1] T. Yang, et al., Effectiveness of commercial and homemade washing agents in removing pesticide residues on and in apples. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 2017, Vol 65 No 44,  https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.jafc.7b03118 (accessed 3 December 2025).

[2] J. Yang, et al., Effectiveness of Different Washing Strategies on Pesticide Residue Removal: The First Comparative Study on Leafy Vegetables, Foods, 2022, Vol 11 No 18, https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11182916 (accessed 3 December 2025).