Have you experienced the joys of opening your vegetable drawer only to discover that your broccoli has gone yellow and your spinach is mushy? You are most likely better than me in using all your produce in a timely fashion. This can be a great source of frustration, especially when it is carefully purchased organic produce. For the last year, I have been purchasing produce through local sources, including trying out various CSA’s and a produce co-op. All this produce comes free of any storage bags. My dilemma has been…what do I store them in to preserve their freshness in the fridge? I tried storing them on their own which only resulted in flimsy/soggy produce.
Enter…green bags! I was very skeptical at first, especially after reading the reviews on Amazon, but after finding these at a local eco-friendly store, I thought I would give them a try. They do seem to work from my experience. I had placed some broccoli in one of these bags before the baby was born. Three weeks later, I am up and returning to the kitchen. My broccoli is still perfectly green! No waste whatsoever! You get 20 bags for $10 and they can be used up to 10 times each. Frugal and re-usable is a nice feature. According to the package they are perfectly safe and preserve the freshness with a natural mineral “oya” that extends the life of produce by absorbing and removing the ethylene gasses that cause normal deterioration. They discourage mold and decay from growing in your fridge!
It was definitely a good investment for the time being. Ultimately, I would like to find a non-disposable alternative, but for now…this works for me!
Has anyone tried these bags? What was your experience? Any other recommendations for naturally preserving produce?
debbie meyer makes a non disposible vesion that has the chemical ova permanently in the plastic. Im not sure of the quality of the plastics, i suppose you could do some more looking into that, but its better than buying bags and throwing out. they sell them on eiether hsn.com or qvc.com i cant remeber and theyre called green boxes.. they also do bread, cheese and meat, and freeze and microwave.
Our local TV channel tested the bags successfully, that made me curious. I’ve been using them for some weeks. Even though one of the tomatoes developed mold prematurely, I have to say, I really like the green bags. I agree that the food has to stay as dry as possible in the bag for it to work properly. I fold my bags closed, not tight.
My neighbor brought me the variety box from Big Lots which is a lot cheaper. The box also contains meat bags! I threw the first bag away after using it, since I read somewhere that these bags should be washed with cold water without soap. (I washed the green bags with hot soapy water up until I read that.) Any experiences with that?
Thank you so much for posting your review! I’ve seen these around, but wasn’t sure how well they actually work. I’ll have to check them out.
I have used them way over 10 times each and wash them after each use and they continue to work great.I have also bought the lunch meat ones and the new bread bags one.The lunch meat ones are pink and zip up and the bread bags are clear.
You know, these just didn’t work for me. I had purchased two boxes worth with very high expectations. What I found annoying was that, if I remember correctly, the instructions say that you have to towel down the inside of the bag if the fruit or veggies sweat and moisture accumulates. I was wiping down the inside of bags almost daily and it became more of a hassel for me. Maybe I did it wrong, but when I DIDNT wipe the bag down, things went bad pretty quickly.
I’ve thought of trying them again, though. Is that insane? lol
I’ve noticed a couple people have mention problems with lettuce. I have a “spinner” to wash lettuce with and then spin to get the water off. I can store my lettuce in it and is lasts a VERY VERY long time. Also I know a lot of people have a lot of good things to say about the frdigsmart from tupperware that someone mentioned in another comment here.
I use them, and also the bread bags too and they work for me! I really appreciate the bread bags, I use them for my homemade bread, and also for cakes, pretzels, etc… love them
WHAT??? Broccoli lasted you three weeks! Sweet…I must have these.
Green bags are amazing! We are not especially frugal but we do love stocking up on red and yellow peppers when they are on sale and they will last a month in green bags. If we get take out Mexican food, we store the leftover chips and a month later they are still crispy! I hate refrigerated bread but with only two adults in the house, loaves of bread often go green but not with these.
I’ve always wondered if these worked.
Hummmm yeah I’m with you a non-disposable one would be better but if you are getting produce without packaging and reusing those really it’s way better. And if they help your produce last longer all the better! I may have to try them!
I’ve actually seen these at Walmart and have thought about picking some up. Good to hear that they actually work!
My grandma said these worked pretty well. I may need to pick up a couple boxes!
I’ve been using these for the last couple months with our produce co-op that runs ever other week. I found the secret is to make sure the produce is dry before putting it in the bag — if its wet the food will still spoil.
An effective way to keep celery fresh for a very long time is to wrap it (without rinsing) in a paper towel and then wrap tightly in aluminum foil. (Before submiting this I tried to research if there is a danger with the aluminum and can’t find any listed so I hope it is safe.)
Lynnette,
I just wanted to let you know that when you use aluminum foil the alum does leak into the food over time, just a thought.
I used these bags awhile back, and not really sold on them. I convinced myself that they worked to justify the $10 I spent but really they didn’t work all that well. So my verdict is I didn’t like them enough to shell out money for them…
I will have to try tese out. I have seen them at Whole Foods and wondered if they worked. Loved seeing your reviews and hearing the comments rave. Its now on my list to try. thanks!
I was given these once, but didn’t notice that anything lasted longer than if I just left it in the produce bags from the store. I had plenty of veggies turn mushy in these. I used them, and reused them, of course, but never have bought more. But if they work for you, go for it!
I love them! I find they work the best for Lettuce. Not AS good for berries, but still better than other options.
My family has been using these bags for years with great success. We keep our green leafy vegetables fresh and have reused these bags over and over.
I have these produce preserver disks but haven’t used it yet…supposed to be even better than the bags.
Me, personally? I love them. I find they work just as they say they will. Can’t figure out why they get negative press from some people, but I’m a ‘try-it-for-myself’ type and I did, and I was very happy!
BTW, I found a box at Big Lots really cheap, and it also had bags for bread and cheese! They are all different colors, but I’m not sure if there’s really any other difference in them. But they all seem to work.
We find that these rot our lettuce heads very quickly, but everything else stays fresh and perfect for weeks! So we just store the lettuce wrapped in a towel in the crisper, and put the rest of the produce in the bags.
My mother in law bought some and she’s also turned into a walking informercial for them! She’s so funny. She now loves to show people how crispy her “old” vegetables are.
Tupperware makes FridgeSmart food storage containers that go in your fridge. When you get your produce home from the grocery store, you take all the packaging off so it can breath, and then place it in these containers. They keep fruits and veggies good for a while.
I use Tupperware’s FridgeSmart as well, and have enjoyed them. They seem to keep my fruits and vegetables fresher longer! I also use tinfoil to store my celery. It can keep your celery fresh for weeks longer than if they are in anything else!
Now these I wonder if they worked, or if it was just another$ gimmick. I’ll have to pick-up a container! Worse thing? I’d have another container lol.
I’ve had the same fridgesmarts for 5 years, and they really do work. You just have to make sure that you close the lids tightly and use the correct vents for the type of produce!
I also use FridgeSmart containers, and I didn’t pay a cent for them Thank goodness because Tupperware is expensive. (I had a party and a set of them was the special hostess gift for the month.) I use them mostly for my celery, carrots and lettuce, and they work great. I have to keep referring back to the instructions though, because mine do not have the moisture settings on them (the newer ones do). I had considered the Green Bags for other things that don’t fit so well in the FridgeSmarts, so now I’ll have to give them a shot!
Thanks for sharing your review of these…I’ve been wondering about them for a while.
I have heard about these bags, but was hesitant to use them. I’m glad to know that they work great. I can’t stand how fast broccoli goes bad, so maybe I’ll have to give these a try.
I use these bags as well, and I agree they really do work.
I found one other thing that is not disposable and works for lettuce. I wash and dry the lettuce. Then line a food safe, air tight container with a cotton towel ( or they do make lettuce bags that do the same thing), and fill with the lettuce. I just make sure that the lettuce isn’t touching the container. For me that will last two weeks. The had part is finding time to wash all the lettuce at once. So when I don’t have time I wrap the lettuce, unwashed in a tea towel and put it in the green bag.
I love reading your blog.
Congratulations on Titus!
I have these bags and I think they’re great for everything but bananas which I think is because of the moisture which does something to the peels and the bananas still get mushy.
Thanks for your review – I have been considering these bags, as I prefer grocery shopping every other week if possible.
Right now I’m just trying to use the most perishable produce first, which leads to rather unbalanced weeks (first veggie heavy, then mostly root veggies).
Yes! It’s so funny – whenever I start talking about them, people say I should be on an infomercial. I get very excited about them.
They work better for some things than others – green onions don’t seem to last too long for me (major slimage), but Thai chilis were good for months.
I love these bags. With just two of us, it’s sometimes hard to use up veggies before they turn funky. I’m sure the compost pile benefits, but it’s a waste of money! For Christmas my mom got me a box of the veggie bags and a box of the bread bags made by the same company. They are wonderful. I can buy veggies now without worrying about using them asap. They work better on some veggies than others, but they’re awesome! And the bread bags really help extend the life of my homemade loaves too.
Awwww you’re up mighty late! It’s morning here already!
I got these back in July, and they didn’t seem to work for me. I’m not sure what I did w/them now!