These Fruits and Vegetables Found to Have Most, Least Pesticides

Many of the fruits and vegetables you eat carry a concerning amount of pesticides, a new analysis suggests.The Environmental Working Group (EWG), a Washington, DC-based nonprofit, released its produce report listing the “Dirty Dozen”, or foods found with the most pesticides and forever chemicals, and the “Clean Fifteen,” a list of produce with the lowest amounts of pesticide residue.

More than one-third of non-organic, or conventionally grown, fruit and vegetable samples tested positive for at least one of 31 pesticides considered PFAS compounds, also called “forever chemicals” because they don’t break down easily, remain in the environment and can build up in the body. Peaches, plums, strawberries and grapes had the most PFAS pesticide residues, while produce such as sweet corn and mushrooms had the least, according to the EWG report.

The EWG used U.S. Department of Agriculture testing data on 47 types of produce to create its annual report. The most commonly detected chemical was fludioxonil.