No, you don’t have to spray your groceries with bleach to prevent the coronavirus. Food safety guides advise against using bleach or detergent on anything you’re going to eat.
The most likely cause of a coronavirus infection, according to experts, is person-to-person transmission, which is why social distancing is so important for prevention when grocery shopping. The best way to protect yourself is to shop during non-peak hours.
If you’ve been frantically washing your produce in soapy water in hopes of scrubbing away the coronavirus, you’re definitely not alone. But food safety experts actually advise against this.
Even though soap is a kitchen staple and is effective at preventing the spread of the virus, it’s designed for cleaning surfaces and hands, and isn’t formulated with consumption in mind — meaning scrubbing your apples with soap isn’t a good idea.
All you need to do is gently rub your produce while rinsing with running water. “There’s no need to use soap or a produce wash,” the US Food and Drug Administration said.
Since there’s currently no evidence that COVID-19 spreads through food, produce washing guidelines are the same as they would be if we weren’t facing a pandemic.
Based on research related to foodborne illnesses and other viruses, somewhere between 90% and 99% of what’s on the produce can be removed with running water, explains Ben Chapman, a professor and food safety extension specialist at North Carolina State University.
Does water temperature matter?
Chapman said warm water is fine, “but you’re not going to get any further removal than you would if it was just cold.”
Should I wash produce as soon as I get home, or right before I use it?
Chapman suggests rinsing your fruits and vegetables before eating rather than as soon as you get home from the store, as rinsing right away could cause your produce to go bad faster. There are active compounds on the produce that keep it from decaying, he explains, and these are removed when rinsing. But if washing your produce as soon as you get home makes you feel better, that’s a fine option.
Are special produce washes effective?
Don Schaffner, specialist in food science and professor at Rutgers University said produce washes are likely safe and effective, but many haven’t been tested in a rigorous scientific way, so it’s hard to say if they’re more effective in removing bacteria and viruses than simply rinsing with water. “And of course nothing out there has been evaluated against this new coronavirus,” he said.
The National Environment Agency (NEA) encouraged business owners and operators to maintain a high standard level of hygiene so as to reduce the transmission of Coronavirus.
EcoDeepClean takes on a very unique approach when it comes to disinfecting homes or offices in Singapore.
Offices and business premises such as gyms, yoga studios and tuition centres have been disinfected using non-toxic disinfectant that is not only safe for our employees but the environment as well. The disinfectants used contain compounds in the approved NEA advisory list for fighting Covid-19.
Contact us today for a discussion on how we can disinfect your premise. Email ops@ecodeepclean.com
Now here is some non-coronavirus news that amused dozens of Singaporeans on the road today.
On April 5th 2020, a white horse was seen galloping along the roads in the city state near Bukit Timah. It was not known where the horse came from or how it managed to escaped to the road.
Fortunately there was not much traffic as most Singaporeans were staying at home during this coronavirus period. The horse had almost the whole road to herself, with drivers couldn’t believe what they saw. It looks like a scene from Narnia or Jumanji. Talk about some horsepower!
See the video below. Just remember not to touch your face or rub your eyes after watching 😉
Starting 5 April (Sunday) until 12 April (Sunday), Singapore residents will be able to collect reusable mask per household at the designated Community Centres.
For more info, you may visit maskgowhere.gov.sg
Let’s all do our part to stay safe!
*for an eco-friendly and non-toxic deep cleaning for your homes and offices, check out our link below
Hiring just the right housekeeper can be life-altering for the busy family. Now this may seem to be a little over-the-top, but I am serious. Think about your life-whether single, a couple or a family-you have no time. No time to keep your home as organized or clean as you would like. No time to do the smaller tidying jobs that would make a huge difference.
“I am still learning about my home. If you can’t do it yourself, find good service people and treat them well.” — Terry (mom to our Human Resources Coordinator, Louisa)
Raise your hand if you grew up with a mom (or another parental figure) constantly reminding you to clean your room. Often, our earliest memories of figuring out how to tidy up and take care of our homes are with our moms—they taught us how to do laundry, how to do the dishes, and how to make our beds. So it should come as no surprise that when we asked our moms for their best homekeeping advice, they came back with some great tips.
Most agreed on a few major themes: it’s important to make sure everything has a home, that you put things back when you take them out, and that your home is an inviting, relaxing place to come home to—and invite others to.
Hiring just the right housekeeper can be life-altering for the busy family. Now this may seem to be a little over-the-top, but I am serious. Think about your life-whether single, a couple or a family-you have no time. No time to keep your home as organized or clean as you would like. No time to do the smaller tidying jobs that would make a huge difference.
Do you ever casually go about your day, popping into the kitchen for a little peanut butter toast and then the next thing you know you’re turning over the toaster oven because it’s been so long and you just can’t take the crumbs anymore?
At the risk of sounding like a cloyingly optimistic Peppy Patty (which I can assure you, I am not), I never really understood all the pervasive hate for Mondays. I get that easing yourself from the freedom of the weekend into the structure of the workweek is a bit of a shock to the system…
