47 Most Pesticide Laden Fruits and Veggies

You kind of want to reach out and slap that bottle out of her hand, huh?  In these troubled times, many of us can’t afford to go totally organic. So, if you’re going part-way, how do you get the most bang for your food buck?

The list below will help you make some decisions. Starting with pesticide-laden peaches, apples and sweet green peppers down to the low pesticide load pineapples, avocados and onions, this will give you some helpful tools to make better choices in the produce aisle.

Pesticide Load in Fruits and Vegetables

  1. (worst) Peach
  2. Apple
  3. Sweet Bell Pepper
  4. Celery
  5. Nectarine
  6. Strawberries
  7. Cherries
  8. Kale
  9. Lettuce
  10. Grapes-Imported
  11. Carrot
  12. Pear
  13. Collard Green
  14. Spinach
  15. Potato
  16. Green Beans
  17. Summer Squash
  18. Pepper
  19. Cucumber
  20. Raspberries
  21. Grapes-Domestic
  22. Plum
  23. Orange
  24. Cauliflower
  25. Tangerine
  26. Mushrooms
  27. Banana
  28. Winter Squash
  29. Cantalope
  30. Cranberries
  31. Honeydew Melon
  32. Grapefruit
  33. Sweet Potato
  34. Tomato
  35. Broccoli
  36. Watermelon
  37. Papaya
  38. Eggplant
  39. Cabbage
  40. Kiwi
  41. Sweet Peas-Frozen
  42. Asparagus
  43. Mango
  44. Pineapple
  45. Sweet Corn-Frozen
  46.  Avocado
  47. (best) Onion

Source: Pollan, Michael. The Omnivore’s Dilemma (Penguin Books 2008)

I have to add a personal note here: I know coffee is technically a vegetable, certainly it is a staple of life for many of us. However, coffee is not included on the above list.

Coffee is one of the most pesticide intensive crops in the world. If you’re a coffee lover like I am, consider lowering your toxic load by buying organic coffee, better yet shade grown and fair traded to add to the eco-friendly perks. (Pun intended!)