Which fruit or vegetable contains the most pesticide?

SALT LAKE CITY — Fruits and vegetables that are considered to be among the most healthy food options have also once again made a less prestigious list: Strawberries and spinach top the "Dirty Dozen" for containing the most pesticides, according to the 2024 Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce.

According to the 2024 Dirty Dozen list for nonorganic, conventionally grown produce, those "most contaminated with pesticides" include:

1. Strawberries
2. Spinach
3. Kale, collard and mustard greens
4. Grapes
5. Peaches
6. Pears
7. Nectarines
8. Apples
9. Bell and hot peppers
10. Cherries
11. Blueberries
12. Green beans

The list, released Wednesday, has been curated by the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit, nonpartisan environmental and public health advocacy organization. The group has produced the list, which it bases on its analysis of U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Food and Drug Administration data, for the past 20 years. It considers 46 different fruits and vegetables when making the list of produce with the most pesticide residue and a companion list of produce that's least contaminated.

"The USDA peels or scrubs and washes produce samples before they're tested, whereas the FDA removes only dirt first. Even after these steps, the agencies' tests still found traces of 254 pesticides in all fruits and vegetables analyzed — and 209 of these were on Dirty Dozen produce," the organization said in a news release.

The Agriculture Department posts the results of its monitoring work online. The department said its Pesticide Data Program "produces the most comprehensive pesticide residue database in the U.S." It adds that the monitoring emphasizes "those commodities highly consumed by infants and children."

The working group reported that 95% of the samples of the fruits and vegetables on that list contained pesticides.

As CNN reported, "Pesticides have been linked in studies to preterm births, congenital malformations such as neural tube defects, spontaneous abortions and an increasein genetic damage in humans. Exposure to pesticides has also been associated with lower sperm concentrations, heart disease, cancer and other disorders. "

In a news release on the 2024 report, the Environmental Working Group said "nonorganic produce is loaded with fungicides that may harm human hormone systems." And it noted that four of the five most-often detected chemicals fall into that category, including fludioxonil, pyraclostrobin, boscalid and pyrimethanil.

The release quoted the group's senior toxicologist, Alexis Tempkin: "Emerging evidence suggests many widely used fungicides may disrupt human hormone systems. But more studies are needed to better understand the risks they — and all pesticides — pose to humans, particularly children."

The 'Clean 15′

The group also publishes a "Clean 15 ″ list of produce that has little in the way of trace chemicals, noting that two-thirds of those on the list have no evidence of pesticide residue. The "Clean 15″ are:

1. Avocados
2. Sweet corn
3. Pineapple
4. Onions
5. Papaya
6. Sweet peas (frozen)
7. Asparagus
8. Honeydew melon
9. Kiwi
10. Cabbage
11. Watermelon
12. Mushrooms
13. Mangoes
14. Sweet potatoes
15. Carrots

The group notes some, though certainly not all, of the sweet corn, papaya and summer squash available in the U.S. is produced from genetically modified seeds. "Buy organic varieties of these crops if you want to avoid genetically modified produce," the organization said.

A number of other fruits and vegetables were tested but didn't make either list, including tomatoes, winter squash, cherry tomatoes, celery, lettuce, tangerines, cucumbers, summer squash, broccoli, potatoes, plums, eggplant, raspberries, grapefruit, fresh snap peas, oranges, cantaloupe, bananas and cauliflower.

Produce safety tips

Chemicals are not the only food safety concern when it comes to eating fruits and vegetables. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also points out that produce can contain germs that may make people sick, including salmonella, E. coli and listeria. The CDC says the safest produce is cooked, but next best is making sure that you wash any fruit or vegetable before eating it. "Wash fruits and vegetables under running water, even if you do not plan to eat the peel," its food safety page said.

The CDC also warns consumers about produce that isn't bruised or damaged. Make sure that precut fruits and vegetables are in a refrigerator section or kept on ice. And keep all produce away from raw meat, poultry and seafood in your shopping cart.

And before you wash them when you get them home, wash your hands.

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