My Grocery Shopping Lists: Organic Produce

If you want to eliminate the amount of foods with pesticide residue you feed yourself and your family, you probably already buy organic. However, as we all know, organic tends to be a little pricier than the regular ol’ grocery shopping list items. Instead of buying everything organic, buy the top list of contaminated crops organic. According to the Environmental Working Group, simply following this list could reduce your exposure to pesticides by 80%.

Foods That You Should Always Buy Organic

  • Apples: Apples are the dirtiest of them all, raking number one for pesticides. When you buy your apples organic, make sure to get apple juice and applesauce organic, too!
  • Celery: Celery is often ranked number two for pesticide residue, which may be difficult to wash away because there’s no protective layer of skin.
  • Strawberries: Always buy your strawberries, including strawberry jam or dried strawberries, organic.
  • Blueberries: While frozen bags of blueberries have less pesticides, blueberries, like strawberries, carry about 50 pesticides.
  • Peaches: During the summer, shop at your local farmers’ market for organic peaches. Peaches that aren’t organic have been found with about 50 different pesticides on them, however canned peaches have fewer pesticides, generally speaking.
  • Spinach, Kale, and Lettuce: Buy all of your leafy greens organic to avoid about 50 different kinds of pesticides.
  • Nectarines: While domestic nectarines aren’t that bad, nectarines from imported farms are loaded with chemicals.
  • Grapes: Like nectarines, grapes are imported to the US with countless pesticides. Don’t forget to buy your raisins organic, too!
  • Sweet Bell Peppers: Bell peppers may look colorful and appealing in the aisles but make sure you’re buying these veggies organic.
  • Potatoes: It shouldn’t be a shock that potatoes are pesticide magnets, considering the pests that have historically threatened the vegetable. Sweet potatoes, however, have lower amounts of pesticide residue.

If you follow this list, you pesticide intake will be greatly reduced, making for a healthy happy household. Just buy these organic and you can rest easy buying the rest of your produce in the less expensive produce section.