Pesticide Residue on Fruits and Vegetables: The Dirty Dozen

Find out which foods are safest to buy when organic produce isn't available.

By Natural Home Staff
July/August 2006
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Avocados are among the fruits and vegetables that have the lowest pesticide residue.
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Not all fruits and vegetables carry the same risk of pesticide exposure. The Environmental Working Group’s “dirty dozen” lists fruits and vegetables that notoriously test positive for pesticide residue. Check FoodNews.org for more information.

Foods with the highest pesticide residues:
(Try to buy organic whenever possible)

Apples
Bell peppers
Celery*
Cherries
Imported grapes
Nectarines*
Peaches*
Pears
Potatoes
Raspberries*
Spinach*
Strawberries
*highest residues among the samples

Note: Winter lettuce isn’t on the list, but preliminary studies have found that perchlorate (rocket fuel) may be contaminating lettuce grown in southern Arizona and California, where 90 percent of the nation’s lettuce is grown in the winter.

Foods with the lowest pesticide residues:
(When organic is not available, choose these)

Asparagus
Avocados
Bananas
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Sweet corn
Kiwi
Mangoes
Onions
Papaya
Pineapple
Sweet peas

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