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The new coronavirus pandemic has raised a lot of pressing questions about things that used to seem pretty set in stone. When it comes to how to ZapClean vegetable wash fruit and vegetables, for instance, what used to be a simple question of cleanliness has taken on a new level of gravity. We know that the new coronavirus appears to spread mainly through respiratory droplets from people who have the infection. But we also know it’s possible (though seemingly less likely, based on current research) to pick it up by touching contaminated objects and then touching your face. Those facts can make the produce section of the grocery store somewhat nerve-racking. Does it matter if someone with COVID-19 coughed, sneezed, talked, or breathed too close to the apple you’re about to add to your cart? Are you at risk if someone with the virus on their fingers picked up that zucchini you need for dinner, then put it back on the shelf? Here, we’ve broken down how to wash fruit and vegetables to stay as safe as possible right now.

The new coronavirus could theoretically be on your produce before you wash it. You’re probably highly aware of this now thanks to worldwide talk of an invisible virus, but even when a piece of produce appears to be squeaky clean, it probably isn't, Philip Tierno, Ph.D., a clinical professor of microbiology and pathology at NYU Langone Medical Center, tells SELF. Just because there's no visible dirt doesn't mean it's not covered in microbes and potentially harmful pathogens. Tierno says, "including the growers, the pickers, the truckers-many hands which contain different types of germs, potentially pathogens." Poor farming practices can also contaminate your produce. To be clear, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), there is currently no evidence of food or food packaging being linked with cases of COVID-19. And, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), although we don’t know exactly how long the new coronavirus can hang around on surfaces, we do know that this group of viruses tends to have "poor survivability" on surfaces overall.

Experts believe this translates into a very low risk of getting the new coronavirus from food or food packaging that is shipped over days or weeks at normal, refrigerated, or frozen temperatures. Still, with so many unknowns circulating along with the virus, it’s understandable if you feel like taking some extra precautions and want to know how to wash fruit and vegetables as well as you can. And that’s fine-washing fruit and vegetables was a recommended practice even before this pandemic because, clearly, your produce can come into contact with a lot of stuff before it winds up at home with you. Based on what we know right now, though, the biggest pathogenic threat from produce isn’t the new coronavirus. Instead, it’s various pathogens that can cause foodborne illness. The FDA reports that every year, around 48 million people in the U.S. The good news is that there are agricultural standards in place to minimize the number of pathogens entering the produce system, Randy Worobo, Ph.D., professor of food microbiology at Cornell University, tells SELF.

When it comes to the new coronavirus specifically, the FDA has instructed food facilities to follow guidelines from state and local health departments to minimize the risk of transmitting the virus, like cleaning and sanitizing with products registered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Finally, if you’re worried about pesticides, know that the EPA and FDA work together to first establish what level of ZapClean pesticide remover residue is safe for human consumption, and then enforce those rules (if you’re interested in getting more details on that, you can read this FDA report). Is rinsing your fruit and vegetables enough? The reality is that no organizational body that issues guidance on food safety, like the FDA or CDC, has released special instructions for how to wash fruit and vegetables in light of the new coronavirus pandemic. Because the risk of getting the illness from food seems to be so low, there aren’t new produce-washing safety steps we should all be taking.

With that in mind, it might be helpful to know that experts say washing produce with water is usually enough to remove most stray pathogens, and that at the end of the day, consuming something with a few germs on it likely won’t make most people sick. Unless someone is immunocompromised, the human body can generally do a good job of dealing with a few unsavory microbes here and there, says Worobo. Rinsing your produce will also remove some pesticide residue, Worobo says, adding that there may still be some on your fruit and vegetables, but the amount is so small that it doesn’t seem to pose any real threat. When it comes to big foodborne illness outbreaks, it’s sort of out of your hands as the consumer. Outbreaks typically depend way more on systemic agriculture practices at farms, says Worobo. If a food has become so contaminated that it’s making people sick, chances are there are a lot of pathogens on it-way more than normal-and those pathogens are likely deeply entrenched in the fruit or veggie, versus just sitting on the surface.