Crunchy & Co

There’s some new science on the scene and it’s hitting the produce section of your local grocery store. It’s Apeel (or sometimes referred to as Edipeel), a plant-based coating on your fruits and vegetables intended to prolong their life and reduce food spoilage. We can sense your anxiety already. In this article, we’ll cover Apeel’s history, science, and your frequently asked questions about this new food innovation.

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What is Apeel?

According to its website, “Apeel is made of purified mono- and diglycerides that have been derived from plant oils to mimic the natural protection already existing on fruits and vegetables.” Which led to more questions… how is it derived? Which plant oils? Crunchy Realist discovered a GRAS notice Apeel Sciences summitted to the FDA for a mixture of monoacylglycerides derived from grapeseed oil, which involves solvents and catalysts, and is perhaps not as “naturally-occurring” as portrayed in their marketing. If you are familiar with how canola oil is made, hexane is a solvent that is also used to extract grapeseed oil. Which would mean Apeel carries the same or similar risks as any other processed food or seed oil.

This leads us to question Apeel’s oversimplified explanation of what’s in this coating. We were not able to locate a full ingredients list on their website. If Apeel truly wants to convince consumers that their coating is safe, a more transparent, FULL ingredients list should be provided, including the use of any added chemicals during processing. I’ll wait.

Who is the inventor of Apeel?

James Rogers is the founder and CEO of Apeel. Surprisingly, he does not yet have a Wikipedia page and there is little information available about him online, but you can find a short profile on the World Economic Forum, and a lengthier article on Money, Inc. that also doesn’t say much about him at all. Rogers obtained a PhD in Materials from University of California, Santa Barbara’s (UCSB) College of Engineering, but at the time of publishing, we could not locate a graduation year.

Who owns Apeel?

The Apeel product is owned by Apeel Sciences, a privately held company based in Goleta, California and founded by James Rogers. In 2012, the company received a $100,000 grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to find a way to reduce food waste in developing countries that lacked refrigeration. After the initial grant, Bill Gates, Microsoft cofounder, provided additional financial backing alongside the venture capitalist firms, Andreessen Horowitz and Viking Global Investors. As of 2022, Crunchbase reported that Apeel Sciences had raised $719 million in funding from over 30 investors, including celebrities Katy Perry and Oprah. The company is currently valued at over $2 Billion.

Is Apeel approved by the FDA?

Apeel is approved under the FDA’s GRAS rules, generally accepted as safe. It does not appear that it has been subject to any pre-market testing.

Apeel safety data sheet misrepresentation

In early 2023, a safety data sheet for “APEEL” began circulating. This safety data sheet contained a hazardous statement, leading many to believe that Apeel Sciences products were hazardous. However, the safety data sheet in question was actually referring to a cleaning solution that goes by the same name and is completely unrelated to Apeel Sciences. We think it is important for our readers to have all the facts. As you are researching, you may come across these claims. Crunchy Realist has determined that the claims are unrelated.

Which fruits and vegetables are using Apeel?

The following fruits and vegetables have been reported as using Apeel:

• Apples
• Avocados
• English cucumbers
• Grapefruit
• Lemons
• Limes
• Mandarins
• Mangos
• Oranges
• Strawberries
• Tomatoes

Can USDA organic produce use the Apeel coating?

According to Apeel’s FAQ, Apeel is allowed for use on organic produce. However, many are calling for a more in-depth review, and writing into OMRI for a second look. If you would like to sign the petition, you can participate here. Currently, organic apples seem to be the the ones most commonly found using the coating, but other produce may follow.

How do I know if my produce has an Apeel coating?

Where to buy Apeel?

Apeel has a store locator on their website you can search by zip code to find stores near you who are selling coated produce. However, it is grossly underrepresented because news sources have reported far more stores and growers have opted in (or will soon), including:

• Albertson’s
• Bristol Farms
• Calavo
• Cub
• Del Monte
• Del Rey
• Eco Farms
• Fairway Market
• Food City
• Gelsons
• Harp Foods Stores
• Index Fresh
• Kroger
• Martin’s
• Price Right
• Ralphs
• Sage Fruit Co.
• Target
• The Fresh Market
• Vons
• Wakefern
• Walmart
• West Pak
• Whole Foods

UPDATES made 11/16/2023: Costco, Sprouts, Publix, Trader Joe’s, Jimbo’s, and Natural Grocers are now stating they will not carry Appel produce. Sadly, we also had to add some more grocers to the list above. We have not heard back from Aldi.

Should I eat coated fruits and vegetables?

Despite Apeel’s repetitive reassurance that Apeel is safe to eat, at the end of the day, you’re taking a natural food product and processing it. Each time a food is processed, you open the door for contaminants. Contamination can also occur during the application process. Even if the ingredients are perfectly safe and as natural as the protective peel that the fruit itself already generates, the risk for contamination still exists. And while the company proudly states that they test for the absence of “regulated allergens,” what about everything else? Therefore, it would be safe to assume that the coating would carry the same concerns consumers have about all processed and preservative-ridden food. So far, we’ve learned that the manufacturing process does use heptane and ethyl acetate, two ingredients used in cleaning products, glue, gas, perfumes–lots of things not meant for consumption. So for the crunchy community, it’s going to be a no.

Furthermore, Apeel Sciences was originally founded to help combat food spoilage in undeveloped countries where access to refrigeration is non-existent. If this was its true mission, what is it doing in the grocery stores of the most developed nation? The company will tell you it’s to minimize food spoilage, and while it might… at what risks? We cannot deny the simple truth that the more it is used, the more money Apeel Sciences makes, and the more money the big food manufacturers make (now that the same food can stay on the shelf twice as long). Money, not nutrition or safety, is a motivator here (maybe not the only one, but a motivator nonetheless). Apeel was a million-dollar idea, but expanding it everywhere makes it a billion-dollar idea.

There is no denying that the use of Apeel does have its benefits to the environment (reduced need for refrigeration, reduced packaging, longer life means transportation can be optimized for environmental impact, etc.). But at what cost to our health in a time where everything we are eating is heavily processed? Now our whole foods will be processed too?

What can you do?

We usually like to end our articles on a positive note by empowering our readers with actionable steps and we had to try hard for this one. Unfortunately, now that Apeel has been introduced, you will not know if you are consuming it or not. Even if you ask your local stores and avoid purchasing it directly from the grocery stores, it will be hard to tell if your favorite restaurant is using Apeel products. The chances of you avoiding this completely are slim, but there are some ways you can reduce your exposure if this is important to you:

• Wash your produce in a nontoxic fruit and vegetable wash. Apeel claims some of it is removed with the normal washing process. You should be washing your fruits and vegetables to remove dirt and bugs anyway, so this one is easy.
• If growing your own produce is possible, you can grow your own fruits and vegetables.
• Minimize how often you order take out or eat out.
• Ask your local stores if they carry or plan to carry Apeel products.
• Petition grocers to reject Apeel products.
• Sign the petition to ask OMRI to investigate the USDA organic approval of Apeel on organic produce.

Additional Sources not already linked:
https://www.apeel.com/how-apeel-works
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apeel_Sciences#cite_note-guardian-3
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/12/31/bill-gates-backed-apeel-sciences-makes-fruit-avocados-last-longer.html
https://wickedleeks.riverford.co.uk/features/everything-you-need-to-know-about-apeel/

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