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When it comes to food, we understand just how important it is to know what you’re consuming and feel confident that it is safe for you and your family. We couldn’t agree more, and we’re here to support you with product information straight from the source.
First, in case you’re not familiar…
Why we do what we do:
Apeel was founded to provide a better alternative to traditional post-harvest solutions available in the fresh produce industry, with the ultimate goal of reducing food waste and increasing access to fresh produce for all. In order to ensure that our products are safe and something everyone will enjoy, we only use nature-based and food-grade ingredients. At Apeel, we are committed to transparency about our ingredients, our manufacturing process, our connection to business partners, and our impact on sustainability.
So, what is Apeel and how does it work?
Wait, this is allowed for use on organic produce?
Ok but what are mono- and diglycerides and what are they made from?
It’s important for you to know that mono- and diglycerides already naturally exist in all fruits and vegetables. They are a kind of naturally-occuring lipid, or fat. Apeel’s purified mono- and diglycerides that have been derived from non-GMO, sustainably-sourced plant oils. The plant oils that we use can change, and it doesn’t impact the outcome because the mono- and diglycerides found in Apeel undergo a purification process that eliminates allergens and impurities through heat and distillation. All that remains are the pure mono- and diglycerides. Think of it like distilled water – after the water goes through the distillation process, all that remains is the purest water. Mono- and diglycerides are a commonly used food additive that were affirmed as generally recognized as safe, or GRAS, for perishable and non-perishable food products by the FDA in 1989. These lipids have been used as an ingredient in food products since at least the 1930's and have been reviewed in a number of publicly-available scientific studies and regulatory literature demonstrating their safe use in food. Most recently, the European Food Safety Association (EFSA) concluded that there was no need for a numerical acceptable daily intake, or consumption limit, for this food additive. For further reading on data-backed sources:
Apeel is regularly tested to ensure that it meets the highest purity and safety standards
Heavy metals are not added to our product.
Heavy metals are prevalent in the environment and can be present in food from plant sources. For example, while plants are growing, they take in vitamins, minerals, and metals naturally occurring in soil, water, and even air. Heavy metal limits are set by the government and outline the maximum amount of naturally occuring heavy metals allowed in a product. Heavy metal limits are set based not only on the product / ingredient itself and its manufacturing process, but also taking into consideration a person’s heavy metal exposure from environmental and other dietary sources. Food and food additives are required to be tested against these regulatory limits to demonstrate compliance.
Great! But ...
I have allergies. So what is it made from?
Apeel is derived from a variety of non-GMO, sustainably-sourced plant oils. Because of our rigorous purification process, the plant source doesn’t make a difference because the heat and distillation during the purification process would destroy or distill out the proteins that normally cause allergies. Even so, avoiding and eliminating the presence of allergens is considered throughout our manufacturing process. First, we do not source our materials from regulated allergens like milk, egg, fish, crustacean and molluscan shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, coconut, sesame, wheat, cereals with gluten, soy, sulfites, celery, lupin or mustard, nor do we manufacture in a facility that processes any of these allergens. We regularly test our product to confirm the absence of allergy-causing compounds. If you are concerned about a specific allergen, please ask.
How do you source these materials?
While we could source our ingredient from any fruit or vegetable, we choose to source from the most widely-grown and abundant sources of edible lipids (plant oils) based on a rigorous sustainability assessment method to ensure our impact does not outweigh the benefits. We also evaluate raw material suppliers against a set of minimum requirements and additional best practices regarding human rights and environmental responsibility.
But does the manufacturing process introduce impurities?
Today, our manufacturing process uses pressure, heat and distillation to extract mono- and diglycerides to our specifications, and we test our product to ensure it’s purity. There are publicly available documents, like a GRAS submission and other patents, that we submitted early in our R&D before we established a more industry standard way of making our products. We determined that these processes for manufacturing mono- and diglycerides are actually less sustainable than how we source today, which is from established manufacturers of this common food additive. So no, there’s nothing like heptane, palladium or ethyl acetate involved or present in our product.
I’m still curious:
If it’s so safe, why don’t you label?
We wholeheartedly agree that fruits and vegetables with any coating or post-harvest treatments applied (e.g., waxes, post harvest fungicides, etc., that are manufactured by other companies) should be labeled in accordance with federal regulations. It is the responsibility of the produce supplier and/or the retailer to ensure proper disclosure, and we provide guidance to our supplier and retailer partners when they use Apeel products. This disclosure can happen in a variety of different ways depending on the format of the fresh produce: it can be on the packaging (e.g., a bag), the side of the carton of loose produce, or on a sign somewhere in the fresh produce section of the store. This disclosure must describe the ingredients used, as required by FDA, instead of the specific brand.
Does Apeel-protected produce just look fresh? What about nutrients?
Apeel’s coating preserves nutrient density along with preventing visual decay.
Sounds safe, but...
What happens when I eat Apeel?
There is only a microscopic amount of Apeel applied on top of the lipids that already exist in fruits and vegetables. A normal untreated avocado is roughly 200g (depending on size), containing 21g of lipids. Apeel protection adds only 0.06g. The mono- and diglycerides that make up Apeel's products are made of the same mono- and diglycerides formed in our bodies as a natural part of our digestion. They are converted to energy just the same.
Purity is our priority.
To summarize, we are very rigorous about the safety and purity of Apeel and ensure that the product is safe to eat and simply is meant to give you a bit more time with your fresh produce.
You have questions, we have answers.
Thank you to those of you who submitted questions via the form below. We've enlisted the help of an expert, a clinical dietician and nutritionist, to give her POV on the most frequently asked questions. Toby is the founder of Toby Amidor Nutrition, PC, where she provides nutrition and food safety consulting services for individuals, restaurants and food brands. She is a Wall Street Journal bestselling cookbook author. For close to 15 years Toby has been the nutrition expert for FoodNetwork.com, and founding contributor to their Healthy Eats Blog, and other well known publications. She is also on the medical board for Forbes.com and EatThis.com and on the editorial board for Today’s Dietitian Magazine. Toby trained as a clinical dietitian at New York University.

Thank you for your curiosity! We value your questions and feedback.

We work closely with food science experts and registered dietitians. If you have any additional questions, we'd love to consult our team of experts to help clarify anything further. Send them along here and follow this space for additional content!