Not always as clear as it seems
The 'dirty dozen' and the 'clean fifteen'
The chronic reference dose of a pesticide residue is the maximum amount that is ‘okay’ to have if you would be eating that food every day of your life. This level, just to be safe, is 100 times less than the amount animals were able to consume with no effects during animal tests. That’s a big safety margin!
So how many of the "dirty dozen" exceeded the chronic reference dose? None. That means even the dirtiest of the dozen had pesticide levels that are very, very low.
The 2017 list of the ‘dirty dozen’ includes: grapes, nectarines, apples, celery, tomatoes, peaches, strawberries, sweet bell peppers, cherries, cucumbers, spinach and potatoes. The 2017 ‘clean 15’ include: sweet corn, pineapples, avocados, cabbage, onions, sweet peas frozen, papayas, asparagus, mangoes, eggplants, honeydews melon, kiwis, cantaloupes, cauliflower and grapefruits.
Jg-tc.com reports how, if you are trying to avoid pesticide risk, buying organic won’t necessarily reduce your pesticide intake. The national list of approved pesticides for organic certified farmers include some fairly toxic substances, like copper sulphate, with little to no regulations to how much a farmer may use.
And, the once used and now banned Rotenone was used because it was from a plant rather than a synthetic source, showing that not all organic pesticides are necessarily better for the environment either. Many grocery stores have an organic section, but rarely are they sequestered far enough from the rest of the other fruits and vegetable to not be cross-contaminated.
So, what are your options this spring and summer for fruits and vegetables? Grow your own! One or two tomato plants may yield more than you really need, and the remaining 11 "dirty dozen "may be purchased from local growers.
