In my last two blog posts, we addressed whether or not organic foods are more nutritious, and the current “dirty dozen” list– the worst offenders of the non-organic food world. In this post, we’ll look at other foods to buy organic, and the Top 15 foods that are safe to buy non-organically.
Fatty meats
While it doesn’t make the list of dirty dozen foods, meat makes The Daily Green list. While there are generally no pesticides found in beef muscle, fat is another story. Fewer than a dozen pesticides have been detected in beef fat, but among them are long-lived chemicals that accumulate in human fats just as they do in beef cattle. The same pattern can be seen in other meats, with pork fat and chicken thighs tallying the most pesticide residue. Lean meat come up clean.
Milk
Pesticides and other man-made chemicals have been found in human breast milk. Not surprisingly, pesticides have been found in dairy products, too. Twelve different pesticides have been identified in milk, which is of especial concern because it is often a staple of children’s diets.
Coffee
While the watchdog lists don’t include data on coffee, many of the coffee beans we buy coffee beansare grown in countries with loose regulations on pesticide use. Look for the USDA Organic label to ensure that you are buying beans that have been grown or processed without the use of potentially harmful chemicals.