The Environmental Working Group is a great organization and resource that can help you figure out which produce has been found to be the most contaminated with pesticides- giving you organic gardeners a rough idea of what to grow to alleviate the concerns of contamination, and which you can feel a little more comfortable buying at the grocery store.
Their top 14 produce items found to have the most pesticides are:
- Peaches
- Apples
- Hot Peppers
- Celery
- Nectarines- imported
- Cherry Tomatoes
- Cucumbers
- Grapes
- Spinach
- Potatoes
- Strawberries
- Sweet Bell Peppers
- Kale and Collard Greens
- Summer Squash
Those found to have the least are:
- Asparagus
- Avocados
- Cabbage
- Cantaloupe
- Sweet Corn
- Eggplant
- Grapefruits
- Kiwi
- Mangoes
- Mushrooms
- Onions
- Papayas
- Pineapples
- Sweet Peas-frozen
- Sweet Potatoes
You can see the complete list of 48 ranked at the EWG's full data page, which will really motivate you to start planning that organic garden for 2014!