Quietly rolled out to the public, there is a new coating covering the produce sitting on our grocers' shelves. Everywhere from Costco to Trader Joe's to Vons, you'll find fruits and vegetables laced with a new film that sits between you and your first bite.
Thanks to shady backers such as Bill Gates (Gates Foundation) and Oprah Winfrey, this new product on produce is called Apeel and it's designed to keep a variety of foods looking freshly picked when they might in fact be weeks old.
Apeel has already secured the following partnerships:
- Nature’s Pride (large importer of Europe’s avocados)
- Sage Fruit Co. (Washington State organic apple producer)
- Del Monte (avocados)
- Eco Farms (avocados)
- Del Rey (avocados)
- Horton Fruit Company (avocados)
- RV Aguacates (avocados)
- Alpine Fresh (asparagus)
- Beta (asparagus)
- Farm Direct Supply (asparagus)
- La Venta (asparagus)
- SiCar Farms (limes)
Not even organic produce is spared. That's right, the label we've learned to trust as chemical-free can now include produce that's been chemically sprayed with Apeel in order to last longer.
Smoothly spun as an environmental "gift" by reducing food waste – the mainstream expects us to obediently ingest this coating without questioning, otherwise be deemed anti-environmentalist. But just like so many other things Bill Gates, et. al. have tried to bring down on the masses, we in the New Earth are aware that only pure unadulterated food is real food. Furthermore, there's no denying the difference between food that's actually fresh vs. weeks old, even if it's sprayed to "look" vibrant and healthy.
Sadly, other fruits and vegetables including cucumbers, apples, and citrus can be sprayed with the coating, with undoubtedly more produce being added in the future. Apeel’s website even offers a store locator to find where their products are carried near you.
Apeel is (or will be) available at the following grocers:
- Costco
- Trader Joe's
- Whole Foods
- The Fresh Market
- Vons
- Kroger
- Albertsons
- Harps
- Food Lion
- Target
- Walmart
- Sam's Club
We tip our hat to Hadyn Jule, a member of a Nashville area Make Americans Free Again chapter, who took it upon himself to take action. When he noticed that the Publix grocery chain was not among those listed, he reached out to find out their stance and confirm it for himself.
He received the following reply on August 22, 2023:
Dear Mr. Jule,
Thank you for taking the time to contact us and allowing us the opportunity to serve you. We appreciate the trust you have placed in us as your grocer of choice.
Publix receives fresh produce seven days a week and is focused on fresh! We’ve declined to purchase any products with APEEL on them and have no plans to do so in the future. Our focus is to provide our customers with fresh, natural, and high-quality products.
If you have additional follow-up, please contact us by visiting www.publix.com/contact, or call us at 1-800-242-1227, and reference your case identification number. We look forward to serving you again soon. Hope this meets your request! Thank you!!
Albert Gottuso, Publix Category Manager
Some more good news, as of this writing, Sprouts Farmers Markets has also verbally confirmed that they do not intend to sell fruits or vegetables with this coating. In addition, a familiar brand CalOrganics/Grimmway Farms refuses to use Apeel and has no plans to do so in the future.
Take a page out of Hadyn's playbook and join the effort to inform and protect yourself from products designed to come between you and your food.
If we don't speak up, who will?
Kirem Marnett is editor of New Earth Almanac. She encourages readers to share their take-action stories with her to be featured in future posts. Email her and the editorial team anytime at [email protected].