The Dirty Dozen and The Clean Fifteen 

The Dirty Dozen and the Clean Fifteen refer to the fruits and vegetables that are most and least contaminated by pesticide use.  And why should we care about pesticides? Because pesticides are toxic by design and have been linked to numerous health problems. This guide is designed to help you dictate your organic vs. non-organic purchases.  That said, eating non-organic fruits and vegetables, is ALWAYS a better option than eating processed food, so please don't avoid conventionally grown produce if that's all that's available to you!!

DIRTY DOZEN 

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1. Strawberries 

2. Spinach

3. Nectarines 

4. Apples

5. Peaches

6. Pears

7. Cherries

8. Grapes

9. Celery 

10. Tomatoes 

11. Sweet Bell Peppers

12. Potatoes 

+ Hot Peppers

+ Kale / Collards

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CLEAN FIFTEEN 

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1. Sweet Corn*

2. Avocados

3. Pineapples

4. Cabbage

5. Onions

6. Frozen Sweet Peas

7. Papayas*

8. Asparagus

9. Mangos 

10. Eggplant

11. Honeydew Melon

12. Kiwi

13. Cantaloupe

14. Cauliflower

15. Grapefruit

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* A small amount of sweet corn, papaya and summer squash sold in the United States

is produced from GMO seedstock. Buy organic varieties of these crops if you want to avoid GMO produce.

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