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CNN —
Blueberries, loved by nutritionists for their anti-inflammatory properties, are among the high-fiber green beans in this year’s Dirty Dozen of non-organic products with the most pesticides, according to the Environmental Working Group, an environmental health nonprofit.
In the Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce 2023, researchers analyzed test data from 46,569 samples of 46 fruits and vegetables conducted by the US Department of Agriculture. Each year, a rotating list of products is tested by USDA employees who wash, peel, or scrub fruits and vegetables like consumers do before the foods are screened for 251 different pesticides.
Dirty Dozen 2023
2023 Dirty Dozen (least to least contaminated)
As in 2022, strawberries and spinach continued to occupy the top two spots in the Dirty Dozen, followed by three kales — kale, collards, and mustard. Next listed were peaches, pears, nectarines, apples, grapes, peppers and hot peppers and cherries. Blueberries and green beans were 11th and 12th on the list.
A total of 210 pesticides were found on the 12 foods, the report said. Kale, collards and mustard greens contained the largest number of different pesticides – 103 types – followed by hot peppers and peppers with 101.
“Some USDA tests show traces of pesticides long since banned by the Environmental Protection Agency. Much tighter federal regulation and oversight of these chemicals is needed,” the report said.
“Pesticides are inherently toxic,” said Jane Houlihan, former senior vice president for research at EWG. She was not involved in the report.
“They are designed to harm living organisms, and this inherent toxicity has implications for children’s health, including a potential risk of hormonal imbalances, cancer and damage to the developing brain and nervous system,” Houlihan, who is now research director for Healthy Babies, told Bright Futures, an organization dedicated to reducing babies’ exposure to neurotoxic chemicals.
However, there is good news. Concerned consumers may consider choosing conventionally grown vegetables and fruits from the EWG’s Clean 15, a list of crops least tested with pesticides, the report said. Almost 65% of the foods on the list contained no detectable levels of pesticides.
2023 clean 15
2023 Clean 15 (least to most dirty)
Avocados again topped the list of least contaminated products of 2023 this year, followed by sweetcorn in second place. Pineapple, onion and papaya, frozen snow peas, asparagus, honeydew melon, kiwi, cabbage, mushrooms, mangoes, sweet potatoes, watermelon and carrots made up the rest of the list.
Exposure to a variety of foods free of pesticides is especially important during pregnancy and throughout childhood, experts say. Developing children need the combined nutrients but are also more affected by pollutants such as pesticides.
“Exposure to pesticides during pregnancy can lead to an increased risk of birth defects, low birth weight, and fetal death,” the American Academy of Pediatrics noted. “Childhood exposure has been linked to attention and learning problems and cancer.”
The AAP proposes parents and carers Consult the Buyer’s Guide if you are concerned about your child’s exposure to pesticides.
Houlihan, director of Healthy Babies, Bright Futures, agreed, “Any decision to reduce pesticides in the diet is a good decision for a child.”
Nearly 90% of the blueberry and green bean samples had findings of concern, the report said.
In 2016, when green beans were last tested, the report said the samples contained 51 different pesticides. The latest round of testing found 84 different pesticides, and 6% of the samples tested positive for acephate, an insecticide whose use in vegetables was banned by the EPA in 2011.
“One sample of non-organic green beans had acephate levels that were 500 times the limit set by the EPA,” said Alexis Temkin, a toxicologist at EWG with expertise in toxic chemicals and pesticides.
When tested in 2014, blueberries contained over 50 different pesticides. Tests in 2020 and 2021 found 54 different pesticides — about the same amount. Two insecticides, phosmet and malathion, were found in nearly 10% of blueberry samples, although levels have been declining over the past decade.
Acephate, phosmet, and malathion are organophosphates that interfere with the normal functioning of the nervous system, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A high dose of these chemicals can cause difficulty breathing, nausea, a lower heart rate, vomiting, weakness, paralysis and seizures, the CDC said. Long-term exposure to small amounts can make people “feel tired or weak, irritable, depressed, or forgetful.”
Why are concentrations of some pesticides higher today than in the past?
“Since the early 1990s, when the Food Quality Protection Act was introduced, we’ve seen a decline in some pesticides,” Temkin said. “But we are also seeing an increase in other pesticides being substituted in their place that may not be safer. For this reason, efforts are being made to reduce the use of pesticides overall.”
Chris Novak, president and CEO of CropLife America, an industry association, told CNN the report “willfully misrepresented USDA data.”
“Farmers use pesticides to control insects and fungal diseases that threaten the health and safety of fruits and vegetables,” Novak said via email. “Misinformation about pesticides and different farming methods creates hesitancy and confusion, leading many consumers to choose not to buy fresh produce altogether.”
The Institute of Food Technologists, an industry association, told CNN that the focus should be on staying within legal limits for pesticides, which have been established by significant scientific consensus.
“We all agree that the best-case scenario of pesticide residues would be as close to zero as possible and that there should be further science-based efforts to further reduce pesticide residues,” said Bryan Hitchcock, IFT’s chief science and technology officer .
Many fruits and vegetables with higher levels of pesticides are essential to a balanced diet, so don’t give them up, experts say. Instead, avoid most pesticides by choosing to eat organic versions of the most heavily contaminated plants. While organic foods aren’t more nutritious, most have little to no pesticide residues, Temkin said.
“When a person switches to an organic diet, the level of pesticides in their urine drops rapidly,” Temkin told CNN. “We keep seeing it.”
If organic isn’t available or too expensive, “I would definitely recommend peeling the skin and washing it thoroughly with water,” Temkin said. “Stay away from cleaning products or other advertised items. Flushing with water reduces the level of pesticides.”
Additional product washing tips provided by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration include:
- Washing hands with warm water and soap for 20 seconds before and after preparing fresh produce.
- Rinse produce before peeling to prevent dirt and bacteria from being transferred from the knife to the fruit or vegetable.
- Use a clean vegetable brush to scrub solid produce like apples and melons.
- Dry the products with a clean cloth or paper towel to further reduce any bacteria that may be present.