Avoid These 12 Fruits and Vegetables If You're Worried About Pesticides
The 'Dirty Dozen' includes produce such as spinach, strawberries, and grapes, with 96% of samples showing pesticide residues—many with over 50 different pesticides detected.
The 'Clean Fifteen' features items like pineapple, avocado, and sweet corn, with nearly 60% of samples showing no detectable pesticide residue and very low overall pesticide toxicity.Fruits and vegetables are the MVPs of your diet thanks to their vitamins, minerals, and health-boosting nutrients. However, despite their impressive nutritional profiles, some produce carry high concentrations of pesticide residue that can negate those benefits. Fortunately, the Environmental Working Group's (EWG) 2025 Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce ranks fruits and vegetables according to their pesticide residue levels, helping you make informed choices about what to buy and eat.
Quick primer: Pesticides are substances (or mixtures of substances) used to kill or control pests, including insects, weeds, fungi, and rodents. They are commonly used to protect the agriculture of fruits and vegetables and to repel unwanted organisms that may carry disease. The chemicals are applied when growing produce or after it is harvested, though many pesticides remain on items when they reach your kitchen.
Pesticides are used to protect crops, but they can be notably harmful to human health. Research suggests that pesticides may disrupt hormones, affect fertility, reduce ovarian function, and diminish sperm quality. They may also increase the risk of breast cancer, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.
Related: A New Study Says Washing Produce Does Not Remove Pesticides — Here's What to Do Instead
Given the facts, it is crucial to reduce your exposure to pesticides, says EWG Vice President for Science Alexis Temkin, PhD. 'The EWG's Shopper's Guide is a tool to inform consumers and help them with their produce shopping choices, with the goal of a diet rich in more fruits and vegetables but low in pesticide residue,' she says.
To simplify grocery shopping, the EWG created the Clean Fifteen, representing items with the least pesticide residue, and the Dirty Dozen, which represents produce with the highest residue. The guide has been published since 2004, but this year's edition not only examines the number, presence, and amount of pesticides on produce, but also evaluates their toxicity to humans, Temkin says.
Here's a closer look at the EWG's Shopper's Guide results, along with tips on how to effectively reduce your risk of pesticide exposure.
The EWG Shopper's Guide evaluated data from pesticide residue tests conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on more than 53,000 samples of 47 fruits and vegetables, Temkin says. Prior to testing, all produce samples were washed for 15 to 20 seconds under running water, and inedible peels — such as those on citrus and bananas — were removed, she explains.
Related: How Important Is It Really to Wash Your Fruits and Veggies?
Even after this preparation, traces of 256 pesticides were still found on all the tested fruits and vegetables. Consequently, the EWG categorizes fruits and vegetables into two groups — Clean Fifteen and Dirty Dozen — based on pesticide toxicity, as well as their detected frequency and concentrations.
According to the EWG's analysis of the USDA data, the following pesticides were found on the 47 fruits and vegetables tested.
Fungicides: Fungicides such as pyrimethanil and fludioxonil are specifically designed to control or eliminate fungal diseases.
Pyrethroids: Pyrethroids, such as permethrin and cypermethrin, are synthetic pesticides developed to repel pests, including mosquitoes, flies, gnats, spiders, and ants.
Neonicotinoids: Neonicotinoids, such as acetamiprid and imidacloprid, are similar to nicotine (a naturally occurring insecticide) and are designed to manage pests and insects, including aphids, whiteflies, and mealybugs.
Nearly 60% of Clean Fifteen fruits and vegetables showed no detectable pesticide residue, and only 16% of samples contained residues of two or more pesticides. No sample from the top six Clean Fifteen items (pineapple, sweet corn, avocado, papaya, onion, and sweet peas) had residues of more than three pesticides. Bananas, a new member of the Clean Fifteen list, also had one of the lowest overall pesticide toxicity levels among the tested fruits and vegetables.The following 15 types of produce had the lowest pesticide residue levels of all 47 types sampled, according to the EWG's analysis of the most recent USDA data.
Pineapple
Sweet corn (fresh and frozen)
Avocados
Papaya
Onions
Sweet peas (frozen)
Asparagus
Cabbage
Watermelon
Cauliflower
Bananas
Mangoes
Carrots
Mushrooms
Kiwi
Pesticides were found on 96% of samples from all 12 types of produce. A total of 203 pesticides were detected on the Dirty Dozen, with samples of every type of produce (except cherries) showing more than 50 pesticides. Every item, except for potatoes, had an average of four or more pesticides detected in individual samples, while potatoes averaged two.Of the 47 items tested, the following 12 fruits and vegetables were found to be the most contaminated with pesticides, according to the EWG's analysis of the latest USDA data.
Spinach
Strawberries
Kale, collard, and mustard greens
Grapes
Peaches
Cherries
Nectarines
Pears
Apples
Blackberries
Blueberries
Potatoes
***Bell peppers, hot peppers, and green beans were also included on the Dirty Dozen list due to their overall pesticide toxicity.
'First and foremost, we want to make sure shoppers are getting lots of fruits and vegetables into their diet, whether that is conventionally or organically grown,' Temkin says.
To reduce pesticide exposure, Temkin recommends buying either organic or conventional versions of produce (fresh or frozen) from the Clean Fifteen list, as well as organic versions of items on the Dirty Dozen whenever possible.
Related: RFK Jr. Wants to 'Make America Healthy Again' — Here's What That Means for You
You do not have to avoid eating foods listed in the Dirty Dozen, organic options just have lower pesticide residue, Temkin says. This is because research found organic produce has lower exposure to synthetic pesticides.
Furthermore, all produce should be thoroughly washed for at least 15 seconds under running water before consuming. Although water does not eliminate all pesticide residue, Temkin says it significantly decreases the amount of pesticides while also removing dirt, debris, and potentially harmful bacteria.
Read the original article on Food & Wine
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Atlantic
15 hours ago
- Atlantic
Bring on the ‘MAHA Boxes'
Millions of Americans might soon have mail from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The health secretary—who fiercely opposes industrial, ultraprocessed foods—now wants to send people care packages full of farm-fresh alternatives. They will be called 'MAHA boxes.' For the most part, MAHA boxes remain a mystery. They are mentioned in a leaked draft of a much-touted report the Trump administration is set to release about improving children's health. Reportedly, the 18-page document—which promises studies on the health effects of electromagnetic radiation and changes in how the government regulates sunscreen, among many other things—includes this: 'MAHA Boxes: USDA will develop options to get whole, healthy food to SNAP participants.' In plain English, kids on food stamps might be sent veggies. The idea might seem like a throwaway line in a wish list of policies. (Kush Desai, a deputy White House press secretary, told me that the leaked report should be disregarded as 'speculative literature.') But MAHA boxes are also referenced in the budget request that President Donald Trump sent Congress in May. In that document, MAHA boxes full of 'commodities sourced from domestic farmers and given directly to American households' are proposed as an option for elderly Americans who already get free packages of shelf-stable goods from the government. When I asked the Department of Health and Human Services for more information about MAHA boxes, a spokesperson referred me back to the White House; the Department of Agriculture, which runs the food-stamp program, did not respond. MAHA boxes are likely to come in some form or another. Some of the packages might end up in the trash. Lots of people, and especially kids, do not enjoy eating carrots and kale. Just 10 percent of U.S. adults are estimated to hit their daily recommended portion of vegetables. But if done correctly, MAHA boxes could do some real good. For years, nutrition experts have been piloting similar programs. A recent study that provided diabetic people with healthy meal kits for a year found that their blood sugar improved, as did their overall diet quality. Another, which provided people with a delivery of fruits and vegetables for 16 weeks, showed that consumption of these products increased by nearly half a serving per day. It makes sense: If healthy food shows up at your door, you're probably going to eat it. 'Pretty much any American is going to benefit from a real healthy food box,' Dariush Mozaffarian, the director of the Tufts Food Is Medicine Institute, told me. Sending people healthy food could be a simple way to deal with one of the biggest reasons why poor Americans don't eat more fruits and veggies. The food-stamp program, otherwise known as SNAP, provides enrollees with a debit card they can use for food of their choosing—and a significant portion of SNAP dollars go to unhealthy foods. Research finds that has less to do with people having a sweet tooth than it does the price of a pound of brussel sprouts. Several studies have found that, for food-stamp recipients, price is one of the biggest barriers to eating healthy. Many states already have incentives built into SNAP to encourage consumption of fruits and vegetables. MAHA boxes would be an even more direct nudge. Most nutrition experts I spoke with for this story were much more supportive of MAHA boxes being sent to Americans in addition to food stamps than as a replacement for them. Exactly how the care packages would fit into other food-assistance programs isn't yet clear. Despite its shortcomings, SNAP is very effective at limiting hunger in America. Shipping heavy boxes of produce to the nation's poor is a much bigger undertaking than putting cash on a debit card. There's also the question of what exactly these MAHA boxes will include. If the 'whole, healthy food' in each care package includes raw milk and beef tallow —which Kennedy has promoted—that would only worsen American health. (His own eating habits are even more questionable: Kennedy once said that he ate so many tuna sandwiches that he developed mercury poisoning.) In May, after the Trump administration mentioned MAHA boxes in its budget request, a White House spokesperson told CBS News that the packages would be similar to food boxes that the first Trump administration sent during the pandemic in an effort to connect hungry families with food that would otherwise go to waste. According to a letter signed by Trump that was sent to recipients, each box was supposed to come with 'nutritious food from our farmers.' News reports at the time suggested that wasn't always the case. One recipient reportedly was shipped staples such as onions, milk, some fruit, and eggs, along with seven packages of hot dogs and two blocks of processed cheese. Another described their box as 'a box full of old food and dairy and hot dogs.' The COVID-era program did eventually deliver some 173 million food boxes. But it was still a failure, Gina Plata-Nino of the Food Research & Action Center, an organization that advocates for people on food-assistance programs, told me. The logistics were such a mess that they prompted a congressional investigation. Nonprofits, which helped distribute the packages, received 'rotten food and wet or collapsing boxes,' investigators were told. And the setup of the program was apparently so rushed that the government did not bother to check food distributors' professional references; investigators concluded that a 'company focused on wedding and event planning without significant food distribution experience' was awarded a $39 million contract to transport perishables to food banks. This time around, the White House doesn't have to navigate the urgency of a sudden pandemic in its planning. But questions remain about who exactly will be responsible for getting these boxes to millions of Americans around the country. The White House will likely have to partner with companies that have experience shipping perishable items to remote areas of the country. And although the White House budget says that MAHA boxes will replace a program that primarily provides canned foods to seniors through local food banks, it remains to be seen whether these organizations would have the resources to administer a program of this size. Perhaps the Trump administration has already thought through all these potential logistical hurdles. But trouble with executing grand plans to improve American health has been a consistent theme throughout Trump's tenures in office. In 2020, for example, he pledged to send seniors a $200 discount card to help offset rising drug costs. The cards never came amid questions about the legality of the initiative. Americans do need to change their eating habits if we hope to improve our collective problems of diet-related disease. Getting people excited about the joys of eating fruits and vegetables is laudable. So, too, are some of Kennedy's other ideas on food, such as getting ultraprocessed foods out of school cafeterias. But Kennedy still hasn't spelled out how he will deliver on these grand visions. The government hasn't even defined what an ultraprocessed food is, despite wanting to ban them. The ideas are good, but a good idea is only the first step.
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- Yahoo
Americans' faith in food safety plummets
Over the past several months, the federal government has made extensive cuts to instrumental food health and safety organizations like the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Center for Disease Control. And now, Gallup polling released this week says American confidence in the government to ensure food safety is at a new low. Shocker. Only 53% of Americans say they have a 'great deal' or 'fair amount' of confidence in food safety. This number has been dropping since 2006, however, there was a sharp decline starting in 2019. Despite this, 84% of Americans still report that their diet is at least 'somewhat healthy,' a number that has stayed consistent since Gallup started this reporting in 2001, but there hasn't been much — if any — increase in how many people are paying attention to nutrition labels and food warnings. Something that has become increasingly necessary as new food recalls are being announced almost daily. The USDA and FDA release public notices when they become aware of a recall, however, some of these notices aren't released until weeks or months after a contamination was reported. These recalls aren't always the easiest to find, sometimes they're hiding in the FDA Enforcement Report, which is completely different from the Recall, Market Withdrawals, & Safety Alerts Data Base. For example, in this week's enforcement report there are six ongoing recalls from the same company (King Cheesecake Company Inc.) because various products included pecans that were potentially contaminated with salmonella. This is listed as a Class I recall, the most serious from the FDA. The recall was initiated on July 18, but not classified by the FDA until August 7. To make matters worse, there is no listed press release for the recall even though it affects products and consumers in six different states including Alabama, Texas, Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Illinois. Despite the cuts, officials have maintained that the number of inspectors and other food regulators will not change. Other experts are saying these cuts are a massive threat to public health and safety and could lead to dangerous disease outbreaks and consistent food recalls. Who's to say which is true, but it's clear the majority of Americans aren't confident in our food systems right now. All in the name of making America healthy again — apparently. The post Americans' faith in food safety plummets appeared first on Solve the daily Crossword
The Hill
2 days ago
- The Hill
HHS will allow emergency use of animal drugs in New World screwworm fight
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) became authorized on Tuesday to allow the use of animal drugs to treat or prevent infestations caused by the New World screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite that has recently disrupted the cattle industry. A declaration from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will allow the FDA to issue emergency use authorizations for animal drugs to treat the insect. A spokesperson for HHS did not specify what medicines have been green-lit to combat the parasite. 'Our priority is to safeguard both animal health and the nation's food supply,' said FDA Commissioner Marty Makary. ' FDA is acting swiftly and responsibly to help ensure we have the necessary tools to prevent and control New World Screwworm, minimizing risks to agriculture and public health.' New World screwworms are a type of fly that lay their eggs in warm-blooded animals like cattle, horses, deer and even household pets like cats and dogs, according to the Department of Agriculture (USDA). Once the eggs hatch, the larvae can cause deadly damage to animals as they burrow into open wounds to feed on living tissue. In rare cases, the bugs have been known to attack humans, but HHS said in a statement that the current risk to human health in the U.S. 'remains very low.' But the potential future threat to animals and the country's food supply chain requires proactive action. USDA announced in May it would suspend all cattle, horse, and bison imports from Mexico after the bug was detected about 700 miles from the U.S. border in animals in Oaxaca and Veracruz. There are no FDA-approved drugs to treat the parasite in the U.S., but the agency can authorize the 'flexible, faster use' of certain animal drug products approved for other purposes or available in other countries under an emergency use authorization, according to a statement from HHS. 'Stopping this pest is a national security priority and we are linking arms across President Trump's cabinet to defend our borders and push back this threat,' said Agriculture Secretary Brooke L. Rollins.
