"The Dirty Dozen" and "The Clean 15″

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) publishes a Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce. They came up with this list called The Dirty Dozen - the 12 fruits and vegetables they have found to be the most contaminated and The Clean 15 - the least contaminated produce.

This is definitely something I did not know. Maybe it's just living on the West side of the country and previously having lived in the Pacific NW (more specifically Portland area) and being majorly exposed to areas of organic and buying locally. Well, regardless of the reason, I've chimed in a little more than I thought and am being more aware of the type of produce I purchase and do not purchase.

Spending all of my grocery money at Whole Foods or purchasing all organic simply isn't in my budget, but I try to do what I can such as purchasing milk without growth hormones and purchasing my own carrots instead of the precut minis. One little step at a time.

So ... here's the dirty dozen and the clean 15. Did you know these?



The Dirty Dozen (buy these organic)

Peach
Apple
Bell Pepper
Celery
Nectarine
Strawberries
Cherries
Kale
Lettuce
Grapes (Imported)
Carrot
Pear

The Clean 15 (lowest in pesticides)

Onion
Avocado
Sweet Corn
Pineapple
Mango
Asparagus
Sweet Peas
Kiwi
Cabbage
Eggplant
Papaya
Watermelon
Broccoli
Tomato
Sweet Potato

Why Does It Matter?

EWG research has found that people who eat the 12 most contaminated fruits and vegetables consume an average of 10 pesticides a day. Those who eat the 15 least contaminated conventionally-grown fruits and vegetables ingest fewer than 2 pesticides daily. WOW!

And people wonder why there's so much cancer, infection and disease out there ...