Whether you are on a budget and need to prioritize your organic purchases, or you would simply like to know which type of produce has the highest pesticide residues—and which do not—the following 2016 guide from The Environmental Working Group may help.
Click on each item for hints on storage and how to keep them fresh.
12 Most Contaminated – “The Dirty Dozen”
- Strawberries
- Apples
- Nectarines
- Peaches
- Celery
- Grapes
- Cherries
- Spinach
- Tomatoes
- Pears
- Sweet Bell Peppers
- Cherry tomatoes
- Cucumbers
- Hot Peppers
- Kale / Collard Greens
15 Least Contaminated “Clean 15”
- Avocados
- Sweet Corn
- Pineapples
- Cabbage
- Sweet Peas (Frozen)
- Onions
- Asparagus
- Mango
- Papaya
- Kiwi Fruit
- Eggplant
- Honey Dew
- Grapefruit
- Cantaloupe
- Cauliflower
I feel that eliminating animal products also helps in reducing our exposure to pesticides, as they contain pesticides from the food the animals eat over the years prior to slaughter.
Do you buy organic produce?
I try to buy organic whenever possible. I estimate that 70% of my produce is organic, and 20% is transitional (labelled “pesticide free”). Many of my science enthusiast friends point out the that there’s not a lot of data to support buying organic. But I don’t need to wait 20 years until the human studies are completed. It makes sense to avoid consuming chemicals designed to kill other species.