This is the Top Ten List of Vegetables to Always Buy Organic in the USA:
1. Bell Peppers
2. Celery
3. Kale
4. Lettuce
5. Carrots
6. Collard Greens
7. Spinach
8. Potatoes
9. Green Beans
10. Summer Squash, e.g. zucchini
Number 1 has the highest level of pesticide residues, descending in order down to Number 10.
If you possibly can, try to buy organic everything when you shop for food. But if you’re on a budget and can’t buy everything organic, these are the 10 vegetables most likely to be sprayed with a cocktail of poisonous pesticides and grown with the nastiest non-organic methods, UNLESS you spend a little more and buy organic. Prioritize these!
Here is another list, the opposite – It’s the Top Ten List of Vegetables that are generally pretty low on pesticide residues in the USA and can be bought by health-conscious consumers with only very low pesticide residues:
1. Onions
2. Avocado
3. Asparagus
4. Frozen peas
5. Cabbage
6. Eggplant
7. Broccoli
8. Tomato
9. Sweet Potato
10. Winter Squash
Number 1 has the lowest level of pesticide residues, ascending in reverse order up to Number 10. Winter squash is probably as high as most people who care about their health would probably want to go for the sake of a few cents.
by Ysanne Spevack
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Thank you! This is very helpful for those of us who are trying to buy as much organic as possible on a limited budget. Now I can choose to spend my money on more of my favorite organic fruits instead of shelling out for organic onions and avacados….funny that the less-toxic veggies are the ones I can easily find.
Posted by Kim on 7th July 2009 at 8:22 am | Permalink
Thanks for reading, Kim… I wanted to help readers choose what to buy, but also want to remind everyone, it’s always worth the extra to get organic everything, including onions and avocados, because of all the other benefits… Buying organic food supports a cleaner environment, often better / less toxic working conditions for farm workers, more bio-diversity, and things like more butterflies and bees!
Posted by Ysanne on 7th July 2009 at 10:32 am | Permalink