Clean Eating!

Do You Know What You're Feeding Your Family?

Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen 2014 Guide

So, if you're like me you know you're supposed to stay away from pesticides right?  You wouldn't want to give any kind of poison to your family if you could help it.  Sometimes you have to pick your battles.  I am always questioning EVERYTHING I buy for my family as I just have a tough time accepting what big companies put out there.  I just want to know what we're eating!

Here is a great list to keep with you if you are interested in keeping your tribe free from pesticides.   The Environmental Working Group has released its 2014 edition of the "Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen" guides to pesticides on produce.

Unfortunately apples still top the list of pesticide heavy produce.  They've been at the top since 2011.  Find a place to get your apples organic.  My favorite place is BJ's as the cost is low and they actually are in great condition.  The cleanest produce on the list is avocados with the least pesticide residue.  Yay!  Love avocados!!

EWG tests conventional produce to let consumers know what we aren't being told by the Environmental Protection Agency ... pesticides are a risky thing to eat!

"Every sample of imported nectarines and 99 percent of apple samples tested positive for at least one pesticide residue,"  EWG notes in their report.  And potatoes contained more pesticides by weight than any other food tested.  "A single grape sample contained 15 pesticides.  Simple sample of celery, cherry tomatoes, imported snap peas and strawberries showed 13 different pesticides apiece."

Dirty Dozen                                               

1.  Apples
2.  Strawberries
3.  Grapes
4.  Celery
5.  Peaches
6.  Spinach
7.  Sweet Bell Peppers
8.  Nectarines (imported)
9.  Cucumbers
10.  Cherry Tomatoes
11.  Snap Peas (imported)
12.  Potatoes
(Kale and Collards and Hot Peppers are included on this list as well although they aren't official as they don't meet traditional EWG list criteria, they are frequently high risk for contamination)

Clean Fifteen

1.   Asparagus
2.  Avocados
3.  Cabbage
4.  Cantaloupe
5.  Cauliflower
6.  Eggplant
7.  Grapefruit
8.  Kiwi
9.  Mangoes
10.  Onions
11.  Papayas
12.  Pineapples
13.  Sweet Corn
14.  Sweet Peas
15.  Sweet Potatoes

A general rule to keep in mind when figuring out what is higher risk for contamination is to look at the outside of the produce.  If it has a tough covering, it's usually safer (mango, pineapple, eggplant).  If you eat the skin it usually has a good chance of having more pesticides (strawberries, apples, blueberries, leafy greens).

Hope this helps you next time you are wondering if it's worth buying organic!

Krista