CYPRESS, CA - As sustainability and food safety concerns remain top of mind, an innovation has arisen to wash worries away for consumers while giving the retailer an amazing value-added offering for their produce departments. ECOS®, the plant-based cleaning products company based in southern California, is putting a new definition to the term ‘clean eating’ with its latest plant-based product.

“With the spread of COVID-19, we found ourselves on the front lines as an essential business. Along with our safer household cleaning products and hand soaps, our plant-based ECOS Fruit + Veggie Wash has also become an important tool in the fight against the coronavirus,” Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks, President and Chief Executive Officer, shares with me. “Consumers are looking to help build their immunity by eating more fruits and vegetables, and they know that washing produce is more important than ever. ECOS Fruit + Veggie Wash is the perfect product to meet that demand with ingredients that are safe and effective at removing pathogens and residues.”

ECOS’ new Organic Fruit + Veggie Wash is a plant-based product that provides a layer of protection by lifting unwanted residues and contaminants from surfaces of fruits and vegetables. Jenna Arkin, ECOS’ Vice President of Innovation, formulated the new organic produce wash with a unique surfactant from nature—soap nuts.

“Our produce wash uses saponin from the soap nut, a berry that comes from a South American tree. We’re using plants to clean plants, which I think is pretty cool,” says Jenna.

“With COVID-19, we need to make sure that we wash all produce that comes into our home,” Kelly continues. “As a mom, I’m very aware of the chemicals I use in my home. I love that our ECOS Fruit + Veggie Wash uses safer plant-based ingredients and that I don’t have to worry about any aftertaste on my food.”

The ECOS team offers a wide variety of green household cleaners for consumers to have a peace of mind, and Kelly says she’s especially proud of her team at ECOS and their response to the pandemic.

“Our team is working so hard to make sure we can provide what consumers really need right now,” Kelly expresses. “They’re working extra shifts and overtime, using masks and gloves, and maintaining safe spacing to keep our retailers stocked and to make sure the families that depend on us are taken care of.”

With facilities in California, Illinois, New Jersey, and Washington, the family-owned company is focusing not just on safer ingredients, but also more sustainable manufacturing. ECOS has reduced its waste by over 95 percent since 2010, and is now one of the first companies to have achieved the sustainability “trifecta” of carbon neutrality, water neutrality, and TRUE Platinum Zero Waste certification.

The world of produce is vast, with different fruits and vegetables just waiting to be discovered and eaten. Or, in this case, used to amplify others for a clean eating experience, making our industry more plant-based than before.

ECOS®