If you soaked berries in salt water and saw small white, wiggling things, they were most likely tiny insect larvae that can sometimes be inside or on berries. This can happen with fresh produce and doesn’t necessarily mean the berries are unsafe or “rotten.”
What to do:
- If many berries released larvae, smell off, look damaged, or feel mushy: it’s best to discard them.
- If only a few berries were affected: remove and throw away the affected berries, then rinse the rest very well under cool running water.
- Do not eat berries with visible larvae if you’re uncomfortable with it.
For the future:
- Rinse berries under running water just before eating.
- Keep them refrigerated.
- A vinegar-water rinse (for example, a diluted solution) is sometimes used to help remove surface microbes, but it won’t guarantee removal of insects that are already inside fruit.
If you tell me which berries they were (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, etc.) and whether the larvae were inside the fruit or floating in the water, I can help identify what likely happened.
