Pesticides in Your Produce

Everybody knows that you should eat your fruits and vegetables. But do you also know which ones could contain dangerous levels of pesticides? The health benefits of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables far outweigh the risks of pesticide exposure. Use EWG's (Environmental Working Group)Shopper's Guide to Pesticides  (a download from our weekly newsletter)  to reduce your exposures as much as possible, but eating conventionally-grown produce is far better than not eating fruits and vegetables at all. 


The Environmental Working Group  (EWG) is an American environmental organization that specializes in research and advocacy in the areas of toxic chemicals, environmental studies and corporate accountability.
 
The Shopper's Guide to Pesticide in Produce will help you determine which fruits and vegetables have the most pesticide residues and are the most important to buy organic. You can and should lower your pesticide intake substantially by avoiding the 12 most contaminated fruits and vegetables and eating the least contaminated produce. 


If you get our Email Newsletter, you can download a guide to print out and fold for your wallet or purse. Get on our email newsletter list from our website www.b2hc.com. A recent CNN article also addressed this growing concern. Check it out here. Oh and if you wonder whether pesticides are bad for you...just ask the bugs.

There is an interesting relationship between most produce farmers and the pesticide industry. Read the EWG article here for more about that.

The Dirty Dozen: The Produce with the Highest Level of Pesticide Content

Buy these fruits and veggies organic (1. = Highest Pesticide Content)

1. Apples
2. Celery
3. Strawberries
4. Peaches
5. Spinach
6. Imported Nectarines
7. Imported Grapes
8. Sweet bell peppers
9. Potatoes
10. Domestic Blueberries
11. Lettuce
12. Kale / Collard Greens

Clean 15

Lowest fruits and veggies in pesticide content (1. = Lowest Pesticide Content)

1. Onion
2. Sweet Corn (Buy Organic if you are concerned about GMO Corn)
3. Pineapples
4. Avocado
5. Asparagus
6. Sweet Peas
7. Mangoes
8. Eggplant
9. Domestic Cantaloupe
10. Kiwi
11. Cabbage
12. Watermelon
13. Sweet Potatoes
14. Grapefruit
15. Mushrooms