Dirty Dozen, Clean Fifteen: When to buy organic and when to save a buck.

What's organic in your basket?

You're standing in the grocery store, holding a $6 tub of organic spinach in one hand and a $3 tub of conventional spinach in the other.  The organic is a whopping $3 more; is it really worth it? 

According to the Environmental Workers Group, that extra $3 is worth every penny: spinach is one of the "Dirty Dozen", the foods you should always buy organic due to the level of pesticide residue.  

The EWG just updated the food lists for 2010 that outline the "Dirty Dozen" and the "Clean Fifteen", the foods that  have the highest pesticide residue and the lowest.  According to the EWG Shopper's Guide, these measurements were determined after nearly 96,000 tests on fruits and vegetables conducted by the FDA and USDA.  I found this fact a bit horrifying:

"EWG research has found that people who eat five fruits and vegetables a day from the Dirty Dozen list consume an average of 10 pesticides a day. Those who eat from the 15 least contaminated conventionally-grown fruits and vegetables ingest fewer than 2 pesticides daily. The Guide helps consumers make informed choices to lower their dietary pesticide load."

Whoa! Talk about toxic load!  I don't know about you, but I would prefer to keep my pesticide intake as close to ZERO as possible.  And while it would be best for us to eat an all organic diet all the time, sometimes - especially if you are on a tight budget, visiting friends or family, or shopping at stores with limited selections - it just isn't possible.  I try prioritize organics the best I can - I am sensitive to chemicals, disagree with many conventional farming practices, and am trying to minimize my toxic load as much as possible.  I don't want chemicals in my food.  From time to time, however, I do buy conventional produce and I find these lists helpful when making selections.  

In short?  Try to by everything organic if you can.  But if you need to buy conventional, use these lists as a guide to help you make smart decisions.  

Dirty Dozen 
Buy these organic whenever possible. 

1. Celery (worst)
2. Peaches 
3. Strawberries 
4. Apples 
5. Blueberries 
6. Nectarines 
7. Bell Peppers 
8. Spinach 
9. Kale 
10. Cherries 
11. Potatoes 
12. Grapes (Imported)

Clean Fifteen
Lowest in pesticide residue. 

1. Onions (best)
2. Avocado 
3. Sweet Corn 
4. Pineapple 
5. Mangos 
6. Sweet Peas 
7. Asparagus 
8. Kiwi 
9. Cabbage 
10. Eggplant 
11. Cantaloupe 
12. Watermelon 
13. Grapefruit 
14. Sweet Potato 
15. Honeydew

For more information and a full list, go to Food News.  

Information Source: http://www.foodnews.org/EWG-shoppers-guide-download-final.pdf

How do you prioritize your produce shopping?  How much of your food is organic?

Comments

[Cassandra]

We don't buy anything organic, unfortunately. I really need to search out a farmers market. The local grocery stores have very little organic produce and what they do have is usually low quality for 3x the price of conventional. If I'm forced to choose between organic wilted looking fruits and vegetables or fresh conventional, we pick the conventional. It's frustrating.

[Kaye]

do you ever use the veggie wash stuff (I bought mine at Trader Joe's)? I used it for the first time with my veggies and fruit I bought this week. After washing the strawberries the water was super dirty. I wonder if it's a strange thing to watch chemicals off with another chemical? And does it actually work? Thoughts?

[lisa]

if you can eat locally grown, seasonal produce you can greatly reduce the cost of buying organic. Even organic produce, when grown out of season doesn't have the same nutrients. Buy organic fruit and veg when they are cheap and in season and preserve peaches, roast peppers and keep in oil, research ways of storing carrots and root veg....