Pesticide Levels on Conventional Fruits & Vegetables
One of the arguments I’ve heard about people buying organic is that it organic foods have less pesticide residue than conventionally farmed foods because of the organic methods. Well, the Environmental Working Group looked at forty-three fruits and vegetables, washed them as they typically would be washed, and then tested them for pesticide residue. The five worst were peaches, apples, sweet bell peppers, celery and nectarines (strawberries weren’t too far behind nectarines) while the five best were onions, avocado, frozen sweet corn (corn didn’t appear elsewhere on the list), pineapples, and mango.
So, if you’re one of the folks buying organic because of pesticide residue, you’ll be happy to learn that your efforts are well worth it for peaches but probably not that valuable for onions. This is because certain fruits and vegetables suck in the bad stuff far more readily than others. Onions don’t seem to suck in that much anyway, so going organic will provide you with no additional advantage.
The Full list: 43 Fruits & Veggies (from the New York Times)
