FDA issues warning to clean avocados because the skin can carry listeria

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You don’t have to live in California to know how good avocados are. They are absolutely delicious and have been especially trendy these last few years.

That’s why the news we’ve recently discovered has been super heartbreaking.

There are have been so many recalls being issued lately that somehow this little bit of information about avocados got lost in the mix.

The FDA issued a report just earlier this month stating that it is now crucial to wash your avocados before eating them.

Why? Because a good portion of avocado skins sampled over 18 months tested positive for bacteria like salmonella and listeria.

Now, why must we wash our avocados when it’s just the skin that had tested positive? We all know that we don’t eat that part – it’s not very tasty – and the insides are technically fine. But it still matters.

 

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This is because when you cut a knife into the avocado you are transferring the bacteria from the outside into the flesh, therefore contaminating it.

Chances of carrying that bacteria with a knife are slim, however 0.24% of the avocados tested were found to have listeria in the edible portion. Yikes.

And 17% of the 1,615 avocados tested carried potentially harmful bacteria.

Salmonella and listeria are potentially fatal bacteria often found in fresh produce and have been responsible for several recalls in the last year.

We can prevent and decrease our chances of getting infected though. Foodsafety.gov recommends thoroughly washing all hard-shelled produce with a produce brush and then drying it off with a clean towel, to prevent any other bacteria from spreading further.

Tell us, do you wash your avocados?

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