The Lotus
(Credit: Michael Kanellos/CNET News.com)There must be something in the air today--or the food, at least. Like the CulinaryPrep, the Lotus Sanitizing System from Tersano claims to eliminate fungus and other bacteria from food, but in this case with an environmentally safe blast of ozone.
As an added bonus, it also helps remove cat puke stains from the carpet. More on that in a second.
The unit, which sells for $169.99, is effectively a home ozone generator. A pump sucks in ambient air, and then hits it with a jolt of electricity. The electricity causes the oxygen molecules in the air, which consist of two oxygen atoms, to turn into ozone, which has three oxygen atoms.
Ozone is an unstable molecule and reacts with the first thing it comes in contact with. If it runs into iron, it will make iron oxide. If it's a bacteria or some other microbe, it attaches to the cell wall and blows it open. Fruit and vegetables sitting in the water subsequently get disinfected. The company claims it can kill more than 99 percent of creepies on produce, if used correctly. A squirt bottle full of the ozone-infused water will have cleaning properties for a good 15 minutes.
Before
(Credit: Michael Kanellos/CNET News.com)Ozone can be harmful to humans, if they inhale enough of it. However, the Lotus cranks out only a small amount of ozone. To stay on the safe side, it warns people not to drink out of the squirt bottle. The best part is that there is no harmful chemical residue--the only byproduct is regular oxygen molecules.
Novazone, out of Livermore, Calif., sells industrial-size ozone purifiers for farmers and bottlers. If you've drunk bottled water, you've probably experienced their product.
Tersano also makes a water purifying system.
The Lotus makes a tinny, whirring sound, but the whole process takes only about four minutes. The bowl holds less produce than the average salad spinner, but it's close.
After
(Credit: Michael Kanellos/CNET News.com)But does it kill germs and fungi? I guess. How would you tell? The food tasted clean, but it would after being washed in regular water without ozone.
So I tried out the squirt bottle. It removed a mystery stain on the downstairs carpet and alleviated more than half of the shadow of a cat puke stain that's bedeviled me for a while. You can see the photo comparison.
Still, is it worth $169.99? They are going to have to bring the price way down.
Amazon.com has a new online grocery service for Seattle residents called Amazon Fresh. Users can pick from an selection of grocery items and have them delivered to their home, or one of the local "pickup centers." The home delivery options come in two flavors--a predawn delivery in a temperature-controlled crate, and a scheduled in-person delivery within a one-hour time slot of your choice. The service is in part the next step to Amazon's "Food and Grocery" section, which contains nearly everything except foods that require refrigeration.
Online grocery shopping is not a new phenomenon. Several services offer regional grocery deliveries, including FreshDirect, SimonDelivers, PinkDot, PeaPod, and the long-defunct Webvan.
Amazon Fresh is currently limited to the Seattle area, and by invitation only. To get an invitation, you can use this request form.
[via TechCrunch]
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