You may have heard of the "Dirty Dozen," but what about the "Clean Fifteen"?
Just as fruits and vegetables with the most pesticides are listed, non-organic produce items with significantly less pesticide residues are also ranked by the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit organization that primarily focuses on making the environment healthier.
Each list in EWG's 2023 Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce is based on federal data of over 46,000 samples of 46 fruits and vegetables that were tested for pesticides.
Unlike strawberries and spinach, which topped the "Dirty Dozen," avocados and sweet corn landed the top two spots in the "Clean Fifteen." Pineapples and cabbage also made the list.
The 'Clean Fifteen' 2023
These are the top 15 produce items with "the lowest amount of pesticide residues":
- Avocados
- Sweet corn
- Pineapple
- Onions
- Papaya
- Sweet peas (frozen)
- Asparagus
- Honeydew melon
- Kiwi
- Cabbage
- Mushrooms
- Mangoes
- Sweet potatoes
- Watermelon
- Carrots
"Almost 65 percent of Clean Fifteen fruit and vegetable samples had no detectable pesticide residues," EWG's report notes.
All samples from the top six produce items on the list didn't test positive for more than three pesticides. And for avocados and sweet corn, "less than two percent of samples showed any detectable pesticides."
5 easy ways to add avocados, sweet corn and pineapple to your diet
- Make your own avocado toast at home to add the "cleanest" fruit to your meals — you may even save some money in the process.
- Take a page out of the "Blue Zone" diet by making Succotash with corn, beans, cabbage and more.
- Pair your onions with chickpeas and garlic for a nutritious vegan meal.
- Throw a colorful fruit bowl with pineapples, papaya and mangoes.
- Cut a papaya in half and eat yogurt out of its core (consider lactose-free or unsweetened yogurt if you're worried about bloating).
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