By Alliance Communications Coordinator Amy Durr
“Pesticides are dangerous by design. They are engineered to cause death. And harms to human health are very well documented, with children especially at risk,” facts clearly stated by the Pesticide Action & Agroecology Network.
The Alliance for Sustainability has been taking action to stop dangerous pesticides for more than 40 years. While some changes have been made, many pesticides still harm insects, wildlife, humans, and biodiversity, especially from monoculture farming.
The best way to try to avoid pesticides is to eat organic food. Some pesticides are systemic, meaning the chemicals are placed in water to be absorbed by the produce, like with apples. As a result, no amount of washing will remove the pesticide.
If you eat conventional produce, you can try to reduce the surface pesticides with a brush, scrubbing under running water. Studies show that pesticide residue can linger even after scrubbing.
Watch Out – The 2024 Dirty Dozen™
The Environmental Working Group’s annual list of the 12 fruits and vegetables most contaminated with pesticides is drawn from 46 items included in their analysis. Buy organic whenever possible, but always rinse off all produce!
- Strawberries
- Spinach
- Kale, collard and mustard greens
- Grapes
- Peaches
- Pears
- Nectarines
- Apples
- Bell and hot peppers
- Cherries
- Blueberries
- Green beans
This list of some of the healthiest fruits and vegetables is a sad indictment of our food systems. It makes me want to get ready for another organic gardening season! Strawberries, spinach and other greens, peppers and green beans are all very easy to grow.
Better News – The 2024 Clean Fifteen™
These 15 items had the lowest amounts of pesticide residues, according to EWG’s analysis of the most recent USDA data.
- Avocados
- Sweet corn*
- Pineapple
- Onions
- Papaya
- Sweet peas (frozen)
- Asparagus
- Honeydew melon
- Kiwi
- Cabbage
- Mushrooms
- Mangoes
- Sweet potatoes
- Watermelon
- Carrots
* A small amount of sweet corn, papaya and summer squash sold in the US is produced from genetically modified seeds. Buy organic varieties of these crops if you want to avoid genetically modified produce.
While the Dirty Dozen list may be disturbing, I feel it’s positive that 65% of the Clean 15 samples had zero detectable pesticides. We’ll continue to share stories about indigenous and other positive sustainable agriculture aligned movements. Meanwhile, we hope you’ll consider buying organic or growing your own produce.
Keep your eye on our bi-weekly Take Actions, where we often support actions to regulate and eliminate pesticides. You can also support groups working to bring systematic change, like the Environmental Working Group, Pesticide Action Network, Beyond Pesticides and, of course, the Alliance for Sustainability.