don’t wash your chicken, cites recent headlines from around the country. These headlines cite the many health risks associated with the spread of bacteria throughout the kitchen as a result of washing chicken at home in the kitchen sink.
For years, famous cooks from Julia Child to Martha Stewart have recommended washing poultry before cooking, and cookbooks around the world have echoed this advice.
Recent research from Drexler University in Pennsylvania, along with research from New Mexico State University, has suggested that washing chicken can cause germs to spread throughout the kitchen. Germs often spread from the sink, to the countertop, to cheese, to produce, and then to the T-shirt or clothes in the washing machine, spreading deadly germs and greatly increasing the risk of poultry-borne illness and illnesses for the family at home. A new video was even made and a campaign started on the popular National Public Radio show, Salt, teaching the evils of washing chicken.
As honest as these researchers are, and as well-intentioned as the folks at National Public Radio are, they’re only telling part of the truth. Only part of the truth you ask?
What is the rest of the story?
The truth is that most chicken, fish, pork, and beef bought at the local store are often covered in bacteria, with chicken being the worst offender. That’s right folks, birds are often, well, gross. Fear not though, there is light at the end of the tunnel. There it is a way to safely wash your poultry and sanitize it from bacteria, while dramatically increasing freshness and extending shelf life.
Plus, it’s cheap to make, and by increasing the useful life, it can end up saving the average family a ton of cash over the course of a year due to decreased deterioration. What is this new technology? It is actually a very old technology discovered in 1840 and put into widespread use in Europe around 1900. The technology involves ozonating water and using it to wash meat. Using an ozone generator to ozonate water in your kitchen sink, you can safely treat chicken, pork, beef, fish or vegetables at home. Using ozone generator or ozone machine, you can safely kill e coli, kill salmonella, kill campylobacter and kill other common germs safely and effectively.
Ozone is effective in killing microorganisms because it oxidizes their cell membranes. In fact, ozone is more effective than chlorine at killing a wider variety of germs and pathogens. Unlike many other disinfecting agents, ozone does not generate a negative environmental impact, since it quickly and easily degrades into simple pure oxygen.
Ozone for water: Although its use is relatively recent in the United States, ozone and its oxidizing properties were first discovered in 1840. In the early 20th century, France used ozone to disinfect drinking water, and it soon spread to the rest of Europe. Ozone continues to be used in water treatment in both small and large applications. It removes germs, heavy metals and even removes fluoride. Because the use of ozone increases oxygen levels, many people drink ozonated water for health and wellness.
ozone for meat: In Europe, ozonation in food processing began shortly after it was first used for water treatment early in the last century. With recent regulatory rulings alone, the stage has been set for ozonation to make inroads into the US food industry, where adoption of the technology has been slower. In 1996, the USDA approved the use of ozonized water for washing poultry carcasses, in 1997, the United States affirmed that ozone is generally recognized as safe (GRAS).
Fruits and vegetables: Ozone bubbled through water disperses ozone molecules everywhere. This ozonated water can be used to wash berries, fruits, and vegetables. Controlled studies show that ozonated water actually reduces total bacteria counts on fruits and vegetables by more than 90%. Ozonation of water kills germs, mold and mildew and subsequently reduces fungal spoilage, making meats, fruits and vegetables safer to eat and making them last longer.
Ozone offers the family another tool in the ongoing search for food security. At the same time, it does so in a more environmentally friendly way than many other sanitizing agents. With the spread of germs and illnesses on the rise, more families should try ozonation.
It can not only safely wash: chicken, meats, fruits and vegetables, but also can oxygenate the water you drink. Beware of poor quality cheap Chinese machines, they often use a diaphragm driven pump which will wear out quickly after a short time. Ozone generators for fruits, vegetables, meat and olive oil are available from companies that make them here in the US, make sure the one you use employs a heavy duty piston pump and not a cheap diaphragm pump.