EWG's 2023 Dirty Dozen™ and Clean Fifteen™

Paula Gallagher on
EWG has named their Dirty Dozen list of fruits and vegetables for 2023.

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has released their 2023 list for the dirtiest produce on the market. And by dirtiest, they are referring to fruits and vegetables that have the most pesticide residue, also known as the Dirty Dozen™. According to EWG’s analysis of test data from the Department of Agriculture, nearly 70% of produce sold in the United States comes with pesticide residue. Consuming foods that contain pesticides has been linked to a myriad of health issues, including cancer and fertility issues.

The report also includes a list of the cleanest produce – that which contains the least amount of pesticide residue – the Clean Fifteen™. In contrast to the Dirty Dozen, about 65% of the Clean Fifteen fruit and vegetable samples had no pesticide residues.

Here are the findings about 2023's Dirty Dozen:

  • More than 90% of samples of strawberries, apples, cherries, spinach, nectarines and grapes tested positive for residues of two or more pesticides.
  • A total of 210 pesticides were found on Dirty Dozen items.
  • Of those, over 50 different pesticides were detected on every type of crop on the list, except cherries.
  • All of the produce on the Dirty Dozen list had at least one sample with at least 13 different pesticides – and some had as many as many as 23.
  • Kale, collard and mustard greens, as well as hot peppers and bell peppers, had the most pesticides detected of any crop – 103 and 101 pesticides in total, respectively.
  • The neurotoxic organophosphate insecticide acephate, prohibited from use on green beans in 2011, was detected on 6% of green bean samples.

The 2023 Dirty Dozen™ List

  1. Strawberries
  2. Spinach
  3. Kale, collard & mustard greens
  4. Peaches
  5. Pears
  6. Nectarines
  7. Apples
  8. Grapes
  9. Bell & hot Peppers
  10. Cherries
  11. Blueberries
  12. Green Beans

Eating fruits and vegetables is important and unfortunately, organic produce can be expensive – so if you are on a tight budget, consider filling your shopping cart with produce that was found to have the least amount of pesticide residue, like the Clean Fifteen below.

These are some of the key points for consumers about the Clean Fifteen™ List:

  • Almost 65% of the Clean Fifteen fruit and vegetable samples had no detectable pesticide residues.
  • Avocados and sweet corn were the cleanest produce – less than 2% of samples showed any detectable pesticides.
  • Just over 10% of the Clean Fifteen fruit and vegetable samples had residues of two or more pesticides.
  • No sample from the first six the Clean Fifteen items tested positive for more than three pesticides.

The 2023 Clean Fifteen™ List

  1. Carrots
  2. Watermelon
  3. Sweet Potatoes
  4. Mangoes
  5. Mushrooms
  6. Cabbage
  7. Kiwi
  8. Honeydew melon
  9. Asparagus
  10. Sweet peas (frozen)
  11. Papaya
  12. Onions
  13. Pineapple
  14. Sweet corn
  15. Avocados

Note from EWG: A small amount of sweet corn, papaya and summer squash sold in the United States is produced from genetically modified seeds. Buy organic varieties of these crops if you want to avoid genetically modified produce.

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