There’s a good chance that you’ve been to a restaurant and observed an employee grab a soaking wet cloth towel from a red bucket filled with solution and then use the towel to wipe a table clean for the next set of guests. But did you know this seemingly routine practice can carry food safety risks if not conducted properly? In this article, we will take a deeper dive into the practice of reusable wiping cloths, exploring some of the potential food safety risks of this practice as demonstrated by recent scientific efforts.
What is the Purpose of Reusable Wiping Cloths?
Wiping cloths are used to clean tables of food debris and minor spills. But why are these cloths stored in red buckets filled with sanitizer? According to the FDA Food Code, reusable wiping cloths are acceptable for cleaning up food spills as long as they are held in soil-free solutions of a chemical sanitizer in between their use.1 The reason for this is that research shows cloths can easily become breeding grounds for foodborne disease-causing bacteria if used for wiping food.2 Storing the cloths in a sanitizer solution helps to suppress the growth of these pathogenic bacteria. This practice is widely used as a quick and easy way to clean off tables. It is worth mentioning that the FDA Food Code strictly states that this practice is not intended to be a sanitizing step for food contact surfaces. As we’ll see, however, reusable wiping cloths are not without risks.
What are the Risks Associated with Reusable Wiping Cloths?
A food establishment needs to control a number of variables when using reusable wiping cloths: the sanitizer solution needs to be at an appropriate concentration, free from soil, and changed frequently, the sanitizer shouldn’t bind to the cloth itself, and the cloths should be laundered daily and not used for multiple tasks. Research has shown that, if any of these aren’t controlled for, the cloths can potentially spread harmful microorganisms to multiple surfaces within a food establishment. Let’s take a look at some of the recent scientific evidence demonstrating the risks.
Cleaning Tables with Reusable Wiping Cloths Increases Bacterial Counts on Tables
In 2006, researchers from the University of Arizona reported the findings of a bacterial survey of 37 wiping cloths and 10 tabletops from bars and restaurants in New York, California, and Arizona.3 The authors detected coliforms in 89.2% of cloths (mean bacterial count: 7.6 × 105 CFU/cloth) and Escherichia coli in 54.1% of cloths (mean bacterial count: 1.9 × 103 CFU/cloth). These findings are significant since coliforms and E. coli are used as indicator organisms: their presence in a sample is the result of unhygienic conditions.
The authors also noted that cleaning tables with reusable wiping cloths resulted in a significant increase in both bacterial and coliform counts, as compared to before cleaning. On average, the use of the cloths resulted in an increase of approximately 2.0 log10 CFU bacteria on tabletops. The researchers hypothesized that low concentrations of sanitizer solutions were likely to blame for these results.
Finally, the authors found a variety of bacteria, including Listeria innocua in 24.3% (n =9) of all cloth samples. While Listeria innocua is not itself a foodborne pathogen, its presence is sometimes used as an indicator organism for Listeria monocytogenes. Taken together, the findings of this study demonstrate the potential for wiping cloths to cause unhygienic conditions in the real world.
Reusable Wiping Cloths Can Transfer Bacteria and Viruses to Multiple Surfaces
In a more recent study in 2020, researchers at North Carolina State University inoculated a bucket filled with solutions of a quaternary ammonium compound (QAC) based sanitizer with bacteria (Listeria and E. coli) as well as a surrogate for norovirus called MS2 bacteriophage.4 They then used wiping cloths to “clean” consecutive large surface areas of tables and measured the amount of each organism that was transferred to each surface. When the QAC solution was held at the appropriate concentration of 400ppm, minimal bacterial transfer to surfaces occurred, but some measurable virus transfer occurred. When the QAC solution was switched for a control containing no sanitizer, the amount and frequency of microorganism transfer increased. Thus, the researchers concluded that holding the sanitizer solution at proper concentrations is critical for minimizing transfer.4 And for some difficult to inactivate organisms (like viruses), transfer may occur if the sanitizer solution itself doesn’t inactivate the organism. Similar to these results, a 2012 study demonstrated the potential for damp terry cloths to readily transfer MS2 bacteriophage and Feline Calicivirus to clean surfaces.5
Allergen Cross Contamination is a Risk with Wiping Cloths
A 2020 study by researchers at the Food and Drug Administration evaluated the potential for various food allergens (peanut, milk, and egg) to spread to multiple consecutive surfaces using a variety of methods, including the use of reusable terry cloths.6 It was found that allergen transfer was minimized when terry cloths were stored in appropriate solutions of sanitizer in between use, suggesting the potential for an increased chance of allergen cross-contamination if sanitizer levels become inadequate.
Bacterial Contamination of Cloths Readily Occur, even in the Presence of Proper Sanitizer Concentrations
In 2022, researchers from GOJO took 30 samples of reusable wiping cloths and sanitizer solutions from retail food establishments in northeast Ohio.7 The samples were analyzed for the presence of total bacteria and coliform counts (which serve as an indicator for unhygienic conditions). The researchers found that while sanitizer solution samples had few bacterial counts, wiping cloths had coliform bacterial counts as high as 6.16 log10 CFU/cloth, even when the sanitizer solutions were held at the appropriate concentration. This research demonstrates that reusable wiping cloths and the red bucket practice carry risks for cross-contamination, even when controlled properly. The findings from this study will appear in the near future in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.
Wiping Cloths Are One of the More Frequently Cited Health Inspection Violations
The reusable wiping cloth approach to cleaning tables is not only a risk from a public health standpoint, but it also puts a facility at risk for health inspection violations. Improper use and/or holding of these reusable wiping cloths in the sanitizer solution is frequently noted as one of the most common citations during health inspections. In a recent survey of regulatory professionals, over 39% of respondents were aware of recent compliance issues related to their use.8 Many of these compliance issues were from repeat violators.
Are There Better, Less Risky Alternatives?
Fortunately, there are alternatives to the risky practice of using the “rag and bucket” approach for cleaning tables, and each of these eliminates the use of the bucket itself. The use of a ready-to-use sanitizing solution, like PURELL® Foodservice Surface Sanitizer, along with paper towels, is a great way to quickly clean and sanitize tables. This product is food contact surface safe while having a remarkable set of kill claims against 48 organisms, including norovirus (which it kills in 30 seconds).
For even more convenience, ready-to-use sanitizing wipes, like PURELL® Foodservice Surface Sanitizing Wipes, are convenient and easy to use, which helps clean tables quickly. Also, they have an industry-leading set of microbial kill claims (including effective against SARS-CoV-2 and norovirus) while remaining safe for use on food contact surfaces, so you can remain confident that pathogens are stopped dead in their tracks and prevented from being transferred throughout your restaurant.
Conclusions
While the “rag and bucket” approach for cleaning tables may be an inexpensive and quick way to clean tables, research has shown that this process is not without risk. Fortunately, options exist for end users and operators to choose a safer, more effective way to clean and sanitize their restaurants.
Want to see for yourself a demonstration of the shortcomings of the red bucket and reusable cloth? Check out our new webpage "Ditch the Red Bucket," an eye-opening experience.