Cooking Tips: Keeping vegetables from spoiling too quickly

If you shop once a week or less often, buy both fresh and processed -- that is, canned or frozen -- fruits and vegetables, and juices. Use the fresh first; save the processed items for use later.

Buy both ripe and not-so-ripe fresh fruits and vegetables -- for example, yellow and green bananas -- so that the not-so-ripe items will last a few days longer and be ready for eating after you've finished the ripe ones.

Keep fruits and vegetables where you can see them often -- on the top shelf of the refrigerator, or, for fruits that don't need refrigeration (such as bananas and apples), on the table or counter or another easy-to-spot-place. The more often you see the fruits and vegetables, the more likely you may be to eat them.

Submitted by: FDA Consumer

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