Clean eating shouldn’t be so gross.
Even though they look clean on the outside, store-bought fruits and vegetables are swarming with dirt, as one disgusted mom and her followers on TikTok have learned.
Amy Hinch has gone viral on TikTok for showing how scuzzy produce can be, revealing the murky water left behind after washing foods like grapes, blueberries, spinach, and broccoli.
In one clip — which has been viewed more than 28 million times since it was posted two weeks ago — viewers watch a bowl full of red grapes being soaked and cleaned using an ultrasonic produce cleaning machine.
After seven minutes, the water in the bowl had turned cloudy due to dirt particles floating through the mixture.
“This is what we eat,” she says shocked from behind the camera. “This is so disgusting. We have to watch what we eat.”
In the caption, Hinch added that she had to wash the grapes twice before the water came out clean.
Thousands of shocked users flooded Hinch’s post with comments, revolted by the disturbing discovery.
“OMG, I had no idea…I just give them a quick rinse under the sink,” one user wrote.
“I’m buying this machine ASAP,” said another.
Still, some steely TikTokers were unperturbed by the icky outcome.
“[I don’t care] I’m still eating it,” one user shared, while another consumer of unwashed produce declared, “I’m not dead yet.”
“OMG dirty??? On a fruit??? That grows outside??? Insane,’ sneered another.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends washing fruits and vegetables before eating, cutting or cooking them, unless the package states that the contents were inspected before packaging.
According to the health agency, whole fruits and vegetables should be gently scrubbed under running water, even if the skins are ultimately thrown away, as germs from the skins can contaminate the flesh while the produce is being cut and prepared for cooking and eating.
