News Coverage
US: high pesticide level marks `Dirty Dozen' fruits, vegetables
Published October 18, 2006
The Environmental Working Group, a non-profit research organization, has come up with its ''Dirty Dozen,'' a list of the 12 fruits and vegetables that consistently have the highest levels of pesticides. They are: peaches, apples, sweet bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, pears, imported grapes, spinach, lettuce and potatoes. The Washington, D.C.-based group recommends that consumers opt for organically grown when it comes to these produce items.
The 12 produce picks with the least amount of pesticides are: onions, avocados, frozen sweet corn, pineapples, mangoes, asparagus, frozen peas, kiwi, bananas, cabbage, broccoli and papayas. Consumers can safely opt for conventionally grown when it comes to those items, according to the organization.
The lists are based on the results of nearly 43,000 tests for pesticides on produce by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration from 2000 through 2004. The Environmental Working Group found that consumers could cut their pesticide exposure by almost 90 percent by avoiding the most affected fruits and vegetables, and eating the least affected instead.
Washing and rinsing fresh produce can reduce levels of some pesticides but does not eliminate them. Peeling also reduces exposure, but valuable nutrients often are lost when the peel is discarded.
