12 foods you should always buy organic

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According to a report from the "Pesticide Action Network of North America", U.S. consumers may experience up to 70 exposures daily to residues on food from "persistent organic pollutants" (POPs). Testing by the U.S. Department of Agriculture reveals that, even after washing, some fruits and vegetables consistently carry much "higher levels of pesticide residue" than others.

The Dirty Dozen

1. Peaches – Peaches are at the top of the list and had the most samples test positive for multiple pesticides; 87 percent of peaches had more than two pesticide residues. One peach sample tested was contaminated with nine different pesticides, the highest number (tied with an apple sample). Among fruits, peaches had the most pesticides overall. In total, there 53 different pesticides were detected on all peaches sampled.
2. Apples – Runner up to peaches, one apple sample also contained residue of nine different pesticides, making the sample a tie for the most contaminated of all samples tested. Pesticides were found on 94.1 percent of the apples tested. A total of 50 pesticides were detected on apple samples.
3. Sweet Bell Peppers – While sweet bell peppers had fewer samples test positive for pesticides than celery, one sample was contaminated with 11 different pesticides. A total of 81.5 percent of the peppers tested positive for pesticides, and 64 different pesticides were detcted on the samples.
4. Celery – Among vegetables, celery had the most samples test positive for pesticides (94.1 percent) and celery was the most likely to contain multiple pesticides on a single sample.
5. Nectarines – Nectarines had the highest percentage of samples (97.3 percent) test positive for pesticide residue. More than 85 percent of all nectarines tested were contaminated with more than two pesticides.
6. Strawberries – Eight different pesticides were found on a single sample of strawberries, and residue from 38 pesticides were found among all strawberry samples.
7. Cherries – Cherries scored 73 on a scale of one to 100, with 100 being the highest pesticide load.
8. Kale – More than half of all kale samples (53.1 percent) were contaminated with multiple pesticides.
9. Lettuce – One lettuce sample tested positive for nine different pesticides.
10. Grapes (imported) – Eight diffferent pesticides were found on one sample of imported grapes. Domestic grapes came in at 21 on the full list.
11. Carrots – More than 82 percent of carrot samples tested positive for pesticides, and a total of 40 different pesticides were detected on the carrot samples.
12. Pears – Pears scored 63 on the pesticide load scale.

Just off the list are collard greens, spinach, and green beans.