Dirty Dozen & Clean Fifteen 2011

At home we believe that eating organic is important to our family for many reasons. One of them being our little Monkey. However, buying organic can hurt the pocket book especial when you don't have organic coupons. When we go shopping we purchase organic items based on the “dirty dozen” list whenever possible.

I saw ABC New yesterday stating the Environmental Working Group (EWG) just released the New Dirty Dozen. The EWG is a great source for organic shoppers because it let consumers know about the highest pesticide levels found in fruits and vegetables. What that means is that even washing your fruits and vegetables does not remove the pesticide levels because they have penitrated the food item itself. All the more reason to buy organic.

Dirty Dozen 2011

1. Apples
2. Celery
3. Strawberries
4. Peaches
5. Spinach
6. Nectarines (imported)
7. Grapes (imported)
8. Sweet bell peppers
9. Potatoes
10. Blueberries (domestic)
11. Lettuce
12. Kale/collard greens

Luck for us, the EWG report also published the “clean fifteen” indicating those fruits and vegetables with the lowest levels of pesticides. So that means you can peel or just wash the food item to remove any pesticide levels.

Clean Fifteen 2011
1. Onions
2. Sweet corn
3. Pineapples
4. Avocado
5. Asparagus
6. Sweet peas
7. Mangoes
8. Eggplants
9. Cantaloupe (domestic)
10. Kiwi
11. Cabbage
12. Watermelon
13. Sweet potatoes
14. Grapefruit
15. Mushrooms

Next time your out shopping be sure to take along this list.