How to Keep your Fruits and Veggies Fresh

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CLEVELAND - With grocery store prices on the rise, some people may decide to skip buying fruits and vegetables since they go bad so easily.

But, there are ways to help extend their shelf life, like buying frozen.

“I've actually recommended to a lot of my patients to start thinking about getting things in frozen. Frozen foods are frozen at peak ripeness, so you get that same nutrient density,” said Kristin Kirkpatrick, RD registered dietitian for Cleveland Clinic.

Kirkpatrick said another benefit to buying frozen fruits and vegetables is they can stay in your freezer for months at a time.

If you still prefer fresh though, it’s important to consider the types of fruits and vegetables you’re picking.

For example, bananas, berries, and asparagus are known to rot quickly, while apples, oranges, and sweet potatoes have a longer shelf life.

How you store them matters, too.

As Kirkpatrick explains, bananas should not be in the same bowl as other fruits because they emit a gas that can make everything ripen faster.

“The other thing that leads to fruits and vegetables going bad is going to be moisture. So, berries for example, you get some strawberries and all of a sudden, you've got this one that's starting to mold, it's starting to get fuzzy -- that's created by moisture,” she explained. “When we have that batch of berries that has mold or fuzziness, really unless it's just half the batch, if it's just one or two, just remove those, or remove any of the ones that have even slight amounts because that will still emit spores. The rest of them are going to be perfectly fine.”

She said you may also want to skip putting your fruits and vegetables in those bottom drawers of your fridge where they’re easy to forget.

Instead, keep them up high and in clear containers for you to see at all times.