New Dirty Dozen: Fruits & Vegetables to Buy Organic

Did you know that the EWB (Environmental Working Group) has released a new list of Dirty Dozen fruits and vegetables that should be bought organic? As I discussed in What Should I Buy Organic, part of staying frugal while living buying organic is realizing what items should be bought organic versus vs what doesn’t need to be. Therefore, staying current on what produce is the most contaminated with pesticides is important for our nutritional and financial wellbeing.

Here is some interesting (and disturbing) information: According to the EWG, people that eat 5 fruits and veggies from the Dirty Dozen, consume approximately 10 pesticides a day! The good news is that by educating ourselves about what produce to buy organic and what is lowest in pesticides (“Clean 15”), we limit our exposure to these pesticides.

Check out the chart below for the EWG’s list of the Dirty Dozen and Clean 15. You can also print a color version HERE.

Dirty Dozen	Clean 15
1. Celery	1. Onions
2. Peaches	2. Avocado
3. Strawberries	3. Sweet Corn
4. Apples	4. Pineapple
5. Blueberries	5. Mangos
6. Nectarines	6. Sweet Peas
7. Bell Peppers	7. Asparagus
8. Spinach	8. Kiwi
9. Kale	9. Cabbage
10. Cherries	10. Eggplant
11. Potatoes	11. Cantaloupe
12. Grapes (Imported)	12. Watermelon
	13. Grapefruit
	14. Sweet Potato
	15. Honeydew Melon

Celery is the new number one this year. Luckily, we don’t usually buy a lot of celery since my hubby doesn’t like it, but strawberries are a hard one on the “Dirty Dozen” list since my son loves them.

What do you think? Is there anything on these lists that surprises you? What is the hardest to buy organic and stay in your budget?

-Melissa