When it comes to motivating people to wash their produce before eating it, visuals seem to help.
Potatoes, for instance. No food safety argument is needed when dirt is that easy to see and feel. But how about tomatoes and apples, which arrive at the grocer flawless and shiny? And bananas and watermelons, the skins and rinds of which you'll never eat?
Getting people to wash those - yes, even the bananas - just takes a different sort of visual.
"Probably 100 people handled that banana before you did," says Ann Zander, a food safety expert with the Colorado State University Extension in Longmont, Colo. "If you have somebody who hasn't washed his hands after the bathroom or has the flu, that's all over it."
How's that for motivation? Here's the best way to wash your fruits and vegetables:
Wash everything. Virtually all produce should be washed at home just before it is eaten. Washing in advance can reduce shelf life and promote bacterial growth.
No soap. Federal food safety officials say produce should not be washed with detergents, soaps or bleach, which are not approved for use on food and could make you sick. Though some companies do market special produce washes, most experts say clean, cool running water is easier, more economical and just as effective.
If you must have a special wash, make your own with water, lemon juice and baking soda.
Use running water. Keep the produce under the water for 20 seconds, about the time it takes to sing your ABCs.
Match technique to type. Produce with tough, creviced surfaces, like root vegetables, needs aggressive cleaning, such as scrubbing with a brush. More easily bruised items should be held under cool running water and gently rubbed by hand, giving special attention to any crevices or other spots where dirt and microbes can hide.
Wash the scrubber after each use. Tossing it in the dishwasher is the easiest and most effective way to eradicate bacteria.
Some produce is more likely to need more thorough care. According to the Environmental Working Group, conventionally grown peaches, apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, pears, imported grapes, spinach, lettuce and potatoes have more pesticide residues than other produce.
At the other end, the Washington-based advocacy group says onions, avocados, sweet corn, pineapples, mango, asparagus, sweet peas, kiwi, bananas, cabbage, broccoli and papaya had the least residue, if any.