Fresh produce: Is it safe?

As a registered dietitian, I spend a lot of time talking with people about food choices – what to eat more of, how to make a plan to have healthy food at home and meal prep to make it happen, and how to navigate often confusing or conflicting nutrition advice. One concern I hear more frequently than ever from clients and consumers is around the safety of our fresh produce: How is it grown? Is it safe to eat? 

This is why I was so happy to attend the 2025 Safe Fruits and Veggies Farm Tour, hosted by the Alliance for Food and Farming (AFF) in California’s Monterey Peninsula, often referred to as the “Salad Bowl of the World.” Just a 2-hour flight down from where I live in Seattle, this is a region that grows much of the nation’s leafy greens, strawberries, and vegetables. The tour offers a unique opportunity for dietitian communicators like me to go straight to the source. Did you know that 90% of the strawberries we eat in the US come from California? So cool! 

Fear vs. Facts in the Produce Aisle

We know from recent consumer research that safety concerns from recalls and information (misinformation?) online can lead people to avoid certain fruits and vegetables altogether. Recently, my clients have told me that they’re avoiding foods like sprouts and spinach because of recalls and food safety concerns. What happens is, instead of increasing the intake of produce, which we know supports long-term health and reduces chronic disease risk, consumers may end up skipping it altogether due to uncertainty or mistrust. That hurts my dietitian heart. 

On my tour, I got to learn about the Safe Fruits and Veggies campaign, an ongoing project of the AFF, that aims to provide transparent, science-based information about how fruits and vegetables are grown and regulated for safety. Their work is rooted in peer-reviewed toxicology and risk assessment. It was amazing to get to spend so much time with researchers and farmers on this trip. It’s hard to understand what it’s really like unless you’re out in the field and in the processing facilities, seeing how food is being produced in real time. 

Getting Our Hands Dirty in the Field

The AFF’s 2025 tour included in-field visits to farms producing leafy greens, vegetables like broccoli rabe, and strawberries. My colleagues and I got to meet with farmers and other workers – sustainability experts, pest control experts, etc – giving us a chance to see firsthand the challenges and innovations involved in growing safe, nutrient-dense food for a national (and global) market.

Beyond the produce, this tour included something so incredible – access to scientists and food safety experts working in regulation, toxicology, and environmental health. This type of direct engagement matters, especially when misinformation about farming practices is so common right now. 

I even got to pick my own carton of strawberries and have them checked for quality. Only a couple got thrown out ☺ Seeing the workers running through the fields in the background as I picked my ONE carton really put the incredible work that people do to get food onto our tables into perspective. Deep respect to all the folks out there working on farms, picking our food!

We got to observe workers harvesting by hand and also assisted by new machines. I was so happy to see that, when machines come in, the workers keep working but just in different ways. There are a lot of people who are still harvesting, but instead of walking through the mud in the fields, they’re up on the machine working under shade and more upright – there have been some really exciting changes that are good for our farm workers. 

Your Dietitian Still Says “Eat Your Veggies!”

As nutrition professionals, we advocate for increased fruit and vegetable consumption. Because I specialize in cancer care, I think I get even more questions about it because my clients NEED to be eating lots of fruit and veggies, but they also need to keep food safety in mind during treatment. 

The answers aren’t always simple, but they are supported by data. The consensus among toxicologists, the USDA, and the FDA is that both organic and conventionally grown produce are safe to consume and contribute positively to dietary quality. I actually did a wonderful podcast episode with fellow RDN Melissa Joy Dobbins last year about some exciting research on the positive effects of eating more produce. 

When fear leads to avoidance, especially among communities already struggling with access to fresh foods, we lose ground in public health. Attending events like the AFF tour – and hearing directly from people working on the ground and in the lab – gives professionals like us the tools to counter misinformation with clarity and compassion.

If you need some ideas about how to incorporate more produce in a delicious way, I’ve got hundreds of them on the blog. Some that are inspired by my week in Monterey: 

Low Sugar Strawberry Cream Popsicles

Rosemary Broccoli

Lemon Kale Caesar Salad 

Vegan Zucchini Muffins

Rebuilding Trust in Our Food System

One of the most powerful things about this tour is its focus on transparency. By opening up farms to professionals, allowing real-time dialogue with growers and researchers, and demonstrating food safety practices firsthand, the AFF helped demystify a process many people have become disconnected from for me this week.

It also gives dietitians and other healthcare providers a direct line to ask questions and observe procedures that we’re often only exposed to through regulatory reports or secondhand materials.

The 2025 Safe Fruits and Veggies Farm Tour was sponsored by organizations that represent various parts of the food production and agricultural policy system, including the California Strawberry Commission, D’Arrigo Bros, International Fresh Produce Association, and Western Growers Association. I loved spending time with these professionals and out in the farms! 

Consumer fears – and my patients’ questions – about food safety are real, and they’re influencing behavior in the way we eat produce. Events like this farm tour remind us of the complexity of the food system, but also its commitment to safety, innovation, and quality. It was fun to step out of my office this week and get into the field because, after all, what we talk about when we’re working together is food. 

For more information, visit www.safefruitsandveggies.com or explore the science-backed resources at Alliance for Food and Farming. Drop me any questions you have about the trip below!