Gail McQueen Professional Home Economist

HOME

ABOUT

ENVIRONMENT

LINKS

CONTACT

FOOD & NUTRITION

© Gail McQueen 2010. Contact Gail for reprint rights.

Back

Eco-Friendly Sanitizing Solution   Here is an environmentally friendly method for sanitizing both food and food preparation areas. All you need are two spray bottles, one filled with 3% hydrogen peroxide and the other with common white vinegar. Simply spray the produce or item to be sanitized with one bottle, then the other (the order doesn't matter). That's it. No more germs. The real beauty here is that there are no harmful chemical residues left behind, a problem that often happens when other disinfectants are used. Hydrogen peroxide is basically a water molecule with an extra oxygen atom attached. Pure water and oxygen are produced in this reaction. There will be some lingering vinegar taste, but this can be washed off,and even if you don't rinse, it's entirely safe. Setting Up: You will need 2 plastic (not metal) spray bottles*. The one holding the hydrogen peroxide should be dark coloured and opaque since hydrogen peroxide degrades if it is exposed to light or heat. Vinegar and hydrogen peroxide cannot be kept in the same bottle because hydrogen peroxide breaks down to water easily. Buy an ample supply (large containers) of vinegar and hydrogen peroxide. They are less expensive that way. Make sure you are buying consumer strength (3%) hydrogen peroxide, not the stronger laboratory strength (30%) which is a strong oxidizer that could be dangerous. Even consumer strength hydrogen peroxide should be handled with care. Note the advisory on the product label and store in a cool dark place. Use the vinegar and peroxide sprays in tandem to disinfect in the kitchen (counter tops, stovetop, refrigerator,cutting boards even raw fruits and vegetables). One caveat though, do not use these sprays on marble or stone counter tops. Vinegar dissolves calcium based stone. This system was developed by Susan Sumner, a food scientist at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg. It was originally developed for decontaminating beef carcasses but the possibilities for safe disinfection of food and food preparation areas are far reaching. In her tests, she deliberately contaminated fruits and vegetables with Salmonella, Shigella, or E. Coli bacteria, then with combinations of vinegar alone,hydrogen peroxide alone and hydrogen peroxide and vinegar together. Hydrogen peroxide was fairly effective against the germs but the best sanitizing results came when the two mists were paired. This system turned out to be even more effective than the conventional method of using chlorine bleach. * Plastic is suggested because it is both non-reactive and durable. You can use glass if desired. Metal bottles are not recommended since there may be a reaction with the peroxide.   References: Ellen Sandbeck, Green Housekeeping. New York, Scribner, 2006. Science News Online www.sciencenews.org, September 28, 1996.