You may have heard in today’s news that thick-skinned produce, like bananas and avocados–are no healthier organic as they are regularly grown. Pesticides don’t get through their thick skins. Still, wash them anyway to get rid of residue.
However, the nonprofit group dedicated to promoting and protecting people’s health, the Environmental Working Group, has a publication called Shoppers’ Guide to Pesticides in Produce. In it, they list their “Clean Fifteen.” Based on 43,000 pesticide tests, these have been shown to be just as safe whether organic or grown the regular way.
- Broccoli
- Eggplant
- Cabbage
- Banana
- Kiwi
- Asparagus
- Sweet peas (frozen)
- Mango
- Pineapple
- Sweet corn (frozen)
- Avocado
- Onion
They also list what they call the “Dirty Dozen,” ones with the most pesticides.
So now you know, when you shop for produce, which ones it pays to spend extra on organic and which “organic” ones are just a waste of money.