For those of you who missed yesterday’s post, I discussed the 12 highest ranking fruits and vegetables in terms of pesticide residue. Today, I want to discuss ‘The Clean 15’.

What’s ‘The Clean 15’?

Each year the (EWG) ranks fresh fruit and vegetables based on the levels of pesticide residue contained on/within the produce. They do this by combining six different measures of contamination. This includes:

1. Percent of samples tested that had detectable pesticides
2. Percent of samples that had two or more pesticides
3. Average number of pesticides found on a sample
4. Average amount (in parts per million) of all pesticides found
5. Maximum number of pesticides found on a single sample
6. Total number of pesticides found on the commodity

Those ranked lowest of the 51 fruit and vegetables tested make up ‘The Clean 15’.

Looking closely at the list, it becomes apparent that produce contained within a “shell” or inedible skin show lower levels of pesticide residue. Whilst the EWG’s lists are under fire from Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ), reduced exposure as a result of a protective outer shell makes sense to me.

Now, it’s important to note that the fruits and vegetables tested are from the United States however, can be used as a general rule of thumb here in Australia.

Do you follow ‘The Clean 15’ guide when buying conventional produce?

Comment below!