Apeel Sciences’ Organipeel™️ has been a topic of discussion and controversy within the organic produce industry this year. The product has been approved for use on organic produce, though the full ingredient list has not been made public.
In order to uphold our commitment to transparency and sustainability, we do not buy, sell, or distribute any products that have been treated with Apeel Sciences’ Organipeel™️.
We spoke with all organic farmers and suppliers within our network to touch base about the use of Organipeel™️. Our partners take pride in their organic production practices and their commitment to sustainability. So, we were not surprised to learn that they do not and do not plan to use the product. We added the topic to our onboarding process, as we continue to add organic farmers and suppliers to our network.
brief background on apeel sciences' products
Apeel Sciences’ products are used as post-harvest sprays that are claimed to extend the shelf-life of fresh produce. Apeel products include Edipeel™️, for use on conventional produce, and Organipeel™️, for use on organic produce. Apeel products are commonly used on avocados, citrus fruits, apples, and cucumbers. The Organic Material Review Institute (OMRI) lists the company’s Organipeel™️ for use as a fungicide for “post-harvest handling of raw agricultural commodities”.
So, why did we make this decision if Organipeel™️ is approved for use on organic produce?
The ingredients.
According to the company’s website, Apeel Sciences products are “made of purified mono- and diglycerides that have been derived from plant oils”. What’s left out is the extraction process, which includes the use of chemicals. Apeel Sciences’ website also states that Apeel for organic produce contains citric acid. Take a look at Organipeel’s EPA pesticide product label, and you’ll notice that citric acid makes up only 0.66% of the ingredients. The other 99.34% of ingredients are a mystery. The ingredients for products used on organic produce should never be a mystery that consumers have to solve.
As a company built on the principles of sustainability, we deeply care about what goes into the soil and into our bodies. Buying and selling organic produce coated with any of Apeel’s products exposes consumers to mysterious ingredients that you may otherwise not consume if you knew exactly what they were.
We believe that there are healthier alternatives to preserving the shelf life of organic produce that do not require the use of coatings. Building strong, regional food systems is one of them.
resources
If you’re interested in reading some of the resources that helped guide our decision, check out the following:
