Pesticides, The Dirty Dozen
Written by: Krista Reader
Should we still send our kids to school with an apple for their teacher when school starts this fall? According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 98% of commercially grown apples contain pesticide residue.
In the Environmental Working Group’s yearly shopping guide, the data earned the fruit the top spot on the “Dirty Dozen” list, accompanied by celery, strawberries, peaches and spinach. But, before you cross apples off the grocery list or start bringing onions – which topped the clean list – for teachers, the pesticide residue measured well below unsafe levels determined by the USDA.
“It’s a headache,” Mark Seetin of the U.S. Apple Association told The Wall Street Journal. “It implies that something terrible is going on. But growers are doing nothing illegal. They’re just trying to keep their apples fresh and nutritious.”
Others in the industry calculate that crop losses would double without these chemicals, leaving consumers without the choice between often expensive organic fruits and commercial grown options.
The pesticides are used for a variety of functions including keeping the apples free from blemishes, warding off and insects that may take food, sunlight or water from the plants and to keep the fruit fresh before reaching your shopping cart.
To test the pesticide levels, the USDA washed samples of the fruit for 10 seconds under cold water in order to mimic the average American consumer.
The lists are not compiled in order to scare consumers, according to the Environmental Working Group, but more of a guide to encourage shoppers to consider buying organic for thin, edible skinned fruits and vegetables – virtually guaranteeing a pesticide-free product – and be aware of the data.
According to members of the group, the health benefits of a diet “rich in fruits and vegetables outweigh the risks of pesticide exposure.”
For those that don’t want to take the risk, onions were joined by corn, pineapples, avocado and asparagus at the top of the clean list.
