Special to Enviroblog by Amy Rosenthal, EWG's Farm & Food Outreach Coordinator.
You're concerned about where your food comes from and whether it's as safe as you think it should be. You're trying to avoid pesticide exposure and bacterial contamination. You want to support better farming practices. Buying organic just makes sense.
But then do you find yourself standing in the produce aisle, looking at organic peaches for $4.99/lb and regular peaches for $2.99/lb and thinking, Do I need to buy everything organic?
Or you just can't find organic avocados, no matter where you shop - and you start to worry about how many pesticides were used on the conventionally-grown ones? Should you just skip the guacamole this time?
We can help!
Just download the updated EWG Shopper's Guide to Pesticides. You can print it, take it with you and cut down on all that time spent standing confused in the produce aisle.
Our guide lists the fruits and veggies with the most and least pesticide residue, so you can shop accordingly. It's based on EWG's recent analysis of pesticide residue data collected by the FDA & USDA.
Those peaches? Number one on the Dirty Dozen list - better spring for organic. Avocados? Number two on the Clean 15 list, so you can worry less about buying the conventional ones.
For some of you, this new version means it's time to trade in that beat-up paper copy that's been in your wallet for years; for the rest of you, now's the time to get this handy guide for yourself.
Visit our shiny new FoodNews website to download the printable pdf version. You can also see the full list of all 43 kinds of produce we analyzed to find out more about blueberries/bananas/cabbage/whatever your family's favorites are.
Happy shopping!
