Trying to save money? 15 foods you don’t need to buy organic

I think it's not affordable to buy "organic" everything and you have to remember when you are buying them where they are deemed organic you see mango's from Chile and kiwi from Mexico labeled organic... by who's standards...also the amount of toxicity put into the environment as well as not supporting American farmers is how places like whole foods continue to be so popular. I buy local produce and grow some of my own, I find living in the north its impossible to get good fruit and veg year round but I do the best I can.

An easy rule is the thicker the skin the less likely they are to be contaminated. (absorption rate is slower as well as they tend to need less chemicals b/c the thick skin acts as a repellent)

— majstikleo

I know bell peppers are on the list of the "dirty dozen," but what about hothouse grown peppers from Canada? Bags of these are being sold at Costco--no mention of pesticide-free on the label, but if the peppers are grown in a hothouse, wouldn't that require less spraying? Thanks for any advice!

— Anonymous

I buy only organic because I care about the health of farmers farmworkers and the planet. Considering only pesticide residue takes care of the eater but not much more. Lists like the above are also based on average data, and what's in our local store could be much worse that these lists might indicate. Whole organic foods are affordable and there is no reason to go for non-organic ones.

— Anonymous

I buy All fruit organic except pineapple,banana, other tropical fruits, cranberries, plums, and dates. As for vegetables I buy organic potatoes(not sweet), carrot, celery, spinach, lettuce, and green beans. And I do buy organic tomatoes and peppers If I can't get my hands on hot house, because there tested so not even trace pesticides are left if any are used.

I don't buy produce outside of Canada or the US (except tropical fruit) to avoid the unregulated pesticides.

I don't buy any meat, animal, or dairy products organic because I live in Canada and there's no hormones used ever.

— Anonymous

I don't know the answer, but you should be aware that the EWG list does not provide information about which pesticides are used and how they affect human beings, and that pesticides (which leave residues) are used in organics, just with different criterion. Without these two pieces of information, this whole argument is moot.

For instance, many reasonably safe substances are used in commercial pesticides: caffeine, chrysanthemum extract, etc., while nicotine and sulfur - both highly toxic in the doses used for agriculture, are considered to be viable organic pesticides.

I wash my food before I eat it and hope that's enough.

— Anonymous