The Dirty Dozen and The Clean 15

These are two lists that are worth getting to know and worth taking with you the next time you are grocery shopping!  According to the Environmental Working Group, the Dirty Dozen includes 12 crops that are the top-sprayed crops and are therefore worth buying organic. Most pesticides are absorbed into the produce, and those pesticides can’t be removed by washing or peeling. There is also a list called the Clean 15, which includes those fruits and vegetables that bear little to no traces of pesticides and are safer to consume in non-organic form.  If you can buy them organic I would still highly suggest it to be sure to avoid Genetically Modified Organisms.  For more information, go to: www.EWG.org

The Dirty Dozen:

1. Apples
2. Peaches
3. Nectarines
4. Strawberries
5. Cherries
6. Pears
7. Grapes (imported)
8. Celery
9. Spinach
10. Sweet bell peppers
11. Lettuce
12. Potatoes

The Clean 15:

1. Onions
2. Avocados
3. Sweet corn
4. Pineapples
5. Mango
6. Sweet peas
7. Asparagus
8. Kiwi fruit
9. Cabbage
10. Eggplant
11. Cantaloupe
12. Watermelon
13. Grapefruit
14. Sweet potatoes
15. Sweet onions