GREEN BAGS: Deal or Dud?

My mother-in-law was recently raving about her new best friend - the "Green Bag," a food storage solution that claim they are capable of keeping produce fresh for up to 30 days. Every heard of them? You may have seen them at Bed Bath and Beyond or your local grocery store. You can't miss the circa 1972 packaging. It's almost enough to make you NOT want to buy them.

Regardless, both Debbie Meyer and Evert-Fresh are two companies that have a handle on marketing this plastic bag that contains zeolite that absorbs ethylene gas which they claim to be the major cause of fruits and vegetables going bad. Without getting too scientific, plants use ehylene as a hormone. One of its actions is to ripen fruit so if you can reduce the concentration of ethylene around an apple, for example, it shouldn't get over-ripe and mushy as quickly.

So do Green Bags really work? According to my mother-in-law, yes. But I was still a little skeptical. After doing some research on the internet, there are mixed reviews about the effectiveness of the Green Bags. There are a lot of people that claim they are the best money ever spent. Others have reported good results with only certain types of produce, such as apples and peppers. The majority however were straight disgusted by their ineffectiveness and what they actually did to their produce. I also couldn't find anyone that had gotten the bags to preserve their produce for the full 30 days. Which got me thinking; is produce really meant to be stay good for 30 days? And what about the moisture condensation and humidity inside the bag? That to me screams instant mold.

In my personal opinion, the Green Bags are a complete DUD. A bad marketing gimmick and a complete rip off. C'mon people, they are sold on the Home Shopping Network. Ever personally tried the Green Bag? I'd love to hear your experiences...

So if plastic isn't the answer, how do you extend the shelf life of produce? Click here for a helpful guide on how to store specific produce that will help you maximize each vegetable and each piece of fruit so that you’ll get the most bang for your buck.