The Dirtiest and Cleanest Fruits and Vegetables – View The Complete 2021 Results
Eating quality produce is necessary to maintain a balanced and healthy lifestyle, regardless of whether producers raised them conventionally or organically.
However, heading into our popular summer vacation periods of July and August, when markets are overflowing with an abundance of fresh vegetables and fruits, it’s important to remind ourselves which products are the cleanest – contain the lowest level of pesticides.
Each spring, the nonprofit Environmental Working Group (EWG) publishes a list of fruits and vegetables containing elevated levels of pesticides they call the Dirty Dozen.
The annual list of the twelve most contaminated produce is based on over 40,000 samples tested by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and The Food and Drug Administration (FDA). For the fifth straight year, strawberries lead the list containing the highest pesticide level, followed for the second consecutive year by Spinach and Kale.
Samples are tested only after having been prepared for consumption. The prep means the produce is washed correctly and, where applicable, peeled.
The nonprofit organization also published an annual parallel list of the fifteen cleanest fruits and vegetables containing the lowest pesticides. Avocados again top the clean food list, followed by the same seven items as in the previous list.
EWG Lists From The Last Three Years:
The Dirty Dozen
| 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
| 1. Strawberries 2. Spinach 3. Kale / Collard and Mustard Greens 4. Nectarines 5. Apples 6. Grapes 7. Cherries 8. Peaches 9. Pears 10. Bell and Hot Peppers 11. Celery 12. Tomatoes | 1. Strawberries 2. Spinach 3. Kale 4. Nectarines 5. Apples 6. Grapes 7. Peaches 8. Cherries 9. Pears 10. Tomatoes 11. Celery 12. Potatoes | 1. Strawberries 2. Spinach 3. Kale 4. Nectarines 5. Apples 6. Grapes 7. Peaches 8. Cherries 9. Pears 10. Tomatoes 11. Celery 12. Potatoes |
The Clean Fifteen
| 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
| 1. Avocados 2. Sweet corn 3. Pineapple 4. Onions 5. Papaya 6. Frozen sweet peas 7. Eggplant 8. Asparagus 9.Broccoli 10. Cabbage 11. Kiwi 12. Cauliflower 13. Mushrooms 14. Honeydew melon 15. Cantaloupes | 1. Avocados 2. Sweet corn 3. Pineapple 4. Onions 5. Papaya 6. Sweet Peas (Frozen) 7. Eggplant 8. Asparagus 9. Cauliflower 10. Cantaloupes 11. Broccoli 12. Mushrooms 13. Cabbage 14. Honeydew Melon 15. Kiwi | 1. Avocados 2. Sweet corn 3. Pineapple 4. Sweet Peas (Frozen) 5. Onions 6. Papaya 7. Eggplant 8. Asparagus 9. Kiwi 10. Cabbage 11. Cauliflower 12. Cantaloupes 13. Broccoli 14. Mushrooms 15. Honeydew Melon |
