If you want to reduce your intake of pesticides, choose organic apples, strawberries, grapes, and celery, as an environmental group has singled out these produce as being the biggest carriers of insecticides.
For the third year in a row, apples topped the Environmental Working Group's "Dirty Dozen" list which identified the most pesticide-laden fruits and vegetables in the US. Produce topping this year's "Clean Fifteen" include asparagus, avocados, cabbage, and cantaloupe as some of the least contaminated fruits and vegetables.
In the 9th edition of the Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce, researchers found that even after washing, 67 percent of food samples carried pesticide residues.
To come up with the rankings, the group analyzed residue testing data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration.
Meanwhile, a report from the European Food Safety Authority last year identified Chinese cabbage, Indian peppers, Slovenian peas, Argentinian garlic, and Brazilian potatoes as carrying the most pesticides across Europe.
Here are the top pesticide-laden fruits and vegetables from the Dirty Dozen list that you may want to buy from the organic section of your supermarket:
1. Apples
2. Strawberries
3. Grapes
4. Celery
5. Peaches
6. Spinach
7. Sweet bell peppers
8. Nectarines (imported)
9. Cucumbers
10. Potatoes
11. Cherry tomatoes
12. Hot peppers
Produce earning a place in the organization's Clean Fifteen are as follows:
1. Asparagus
2. Avocados
3. Cabbage
4. Cantaloupe
5. Sweet corn
6. Eggplant
7. Grapefruit
8. Kiwi
9. Mangos
10. Mushrooms
11. Onions
12. Papayas
13. Pineapples
14. Sweet peas (frozen)
15. Sweet potatoes
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Health
