Strawberries are at the top of the list when it comes to pesticides in produce.
Each year, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) compiles the Clean 15 and Dirty Dozen lists to help you choose wisely when buying fruits and veggies. The Clean 15 have the least pesticides and Dirty Dozen have the most pesticides. I definitely buy organic when buying anything on the Dirty list.
One problem with pesticides is that they contain hormone-disrupting chemicals. In fact, one study showed that women with the highest pesticide intake had a 26% lower chance of having a live birth.
Here are the EWG 2021 lists.
Dirty Dozen
- Strawberries
- Spinach
- Kale, collards, mustard greens
- Nectarines
- Apples
- Grapes
- Cherries
- Peaches
- Pears
- Bell peppers, hot peppers
- Celery
- Tomatoes
Clean Fifteen
- Avocado
- Sweet corn*
- Pineapple
- Onion
- Papaya*
- Sweet peas (frozen)
- Eggplant
- Asparagus
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Kiwi
- Cauliflower
- Mushrooms
- Honeydew melon
- Cantaloupe
*A small amount of sweet corn, papaya and summer squash sold in the US is produced from genetically modified seeds. Buy organic if you want to avoid genetically modified produce.
xo,
Jennifer