Organic vs. Non-Organic Produce

Some great tips from Mary Anne about organic vs. non-organic produce.

Below are the two lists for you to print out and/or memorize. The pesticides are cumulative in our tissues and make the liver work over-time to detoxify them. It's hard to keep the liver functioning at peak efficiency when it is being bombarded constantly by pollutants from air, water, and farming techniques....

Worth buying organic (ie, most heavily pesticide)

Vegetables:

bell peppers

celery

spinach, kale, collards, all lettuces

potatoes

Fruits:

apples

peaches & nectarines

grapes

cherries

domestic blueberries

strawberries

Produce receiving the least amts of pesticides: (notice most have tough skins and are not fragile like above group)

Vegetables:

onions

sweet peas

asparagus

cabbage

eggplant

sweet potatoes

Fruits:

avocado

pineapple

mango

kiwi

cantaloupe

watermelon

grapefruit

For the ones left out of both lists, I imagine they get a moderate amt of pesticide, so go safe with organic when possible.

Blueberries are nearly impossible to find organic in our area - a safe alternative is to buy them frozen. We now know that frozen fruits and veggies often have even better nutritional value than fresh b/c they are not picked until peak ripeness which

raises their nutritional content. The biggest gain in nutrition is during that last few days of ripening.

I have found Trader Joe's to be a good source of some organic frozen fruits and veggies and quite a few fresh ones. You can look on the "packed on" date to get the freshest. If you have a farmer's market nearby that offers organic and picked on the day before the

market day, go there!

Good eating this summer!

Mary Anne Robinson Nutritionist Educator & Consultant