Those little ready-to-eat mini carrots are cute and handy - but are they safe?

There has been some baby carrot controversy swirling around out there. 

Rumor has it that they’re mini mutants, soaked in chlorine. While that’s partially true, they’re perfectly safe to eat. Cocktail sized carrots are real carrots, but they don’t grow shaped that way. Farmers have actually modified the regular tapered carrots we know to grow specifically for cocktail carrots. They’re less tapered and easier to cut and shape into about three or four “baby” carrots each. They’re a little sweeter too.

As for the chlorine, it’s true that they are rinsed in a mild solution of water and chlorine to kill bacteria and extend shelf life. Most pre-cut vegetables are. The amount of chlorine residue left on those carrots is about the same as the tap water we rinse them in. When those little carrots start to turn white, it’s not the chlorine - it just a natural occurrence that happens when any cut carrot becomes dehydrated.