Organic Foods

In the last two years I have really given serious thought to the things I have been putting into my body but also the environmental hazards I expose myself to. During my pregnancy with Stella, I cut out many questionable things including artificial sugar and wouldn’t expose myself to household chemicals or paint. I even purchased organic nail polish. Now that Stella is starting to eat solids, I thought it was time I educate myself on organic food. At ECFE (parent and baby class) we had a diatician come and she referenced “Dirty Dozen” a list put together by the Environmental Working Group that ranks fruits and vegetables according to their pesticide toxicity level. I like the idea of ranking fruits and vegetables so that you can see how the levels differ and how you can make the best decisions on buying organic.

Click here to see the Environmental Working Group’s Organic List

The “Dirty Dozen”: Must-buy organic foods

The Full List: 47 Fruits & Veggies

RANK FRUIT OR VEGGIE SCORE
1 (worst) Peach 100 (highest pesticide load)
2 Apple 93
3 Sweet Bell Pepper 83
4 Celery 82
5 Nectarine 81
6 Strawberries 80
7 Cherries 73
8 Kale 69
9 Lettuce 67
10 Grapes – Imported 66
11 Carrot 63
12 Pear 63
13 Collard Greens 60
14 Spinach 58
15 Potato 56
16 Green Beans 53
17 Summer Squash 53
18 Pepper 51
19 Cucumber 50
20 Raspberries 46
21 Grapes – Domestic 44
22 Plum 44
23 Orange 44
24 Cauliflower 39
25 Tangerine 37
26 Mushrooms 36
27 Banana 34
28 Winter Squash 34
29 Cantaloupe 33
30 Cranberries 33
31 Honeydew Melon 30
32 Grapefruit 29
33 Sweet Potato 29
34 Tomato 29
35 Broccoli 28
36 Watermelon 26
37 Papaya 20
38 Eggplant 20
39 Cabbage 17
40 Kiwi 13
41 Sweet Peas – Frozen 10
42 Asparagus 10
43 Mango 9
44 Pineapple 7
45 Sweet Corn – Frozen 2
46 Avocado 1
47 (best) Onion 1 (lowest pesticide load)