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When to buy organic
Fruits and vegetables When to buy organic In 2006, Americans spent $16.7 billion on organic foods, often fruits and vegetables. Because “organic” can mean “pricey,” it makes sense to focus on buying organic versions of produce that is most likely to harbor pesticide residues when grown conventionally. The table below right lists the 16 worst offenders, based on a new analysis of government data by the Organic Center, a nonprofit research and advocacy group. There’s less need to buy organic versions of other produce, especially bananas, citrus fruits, onions, and pineapples, whose skins or outer leaves aren’t eaten.Organic produce generally costs more than conventional. Organic apples bought by our mystery shoppers at stores in six states cost an average of $2.18 per pound, compared with $1.50 for conventional. Organic loose potatoes were $1.84 per pound; conventional, $1.05. (The price gap was less for bagged potatoes.)Note that imported, conventionally grown fruits and vegetables—particularly cucumbers, grapes, lettuce, nectarines, peaches, and sweet bell peppers—might harbor far higher residues than homegrown counterparts. Even imports labeled organic might be cause for caution because some countries have less-reliable regulatory oversight than the U.S.WHAT’S IN A NAME?The Department of Agriculture says that food labeled organic must be produced without most conventional pesticides and synthetic fertilizers and without antibiotics, growth hormones, genetic engineering, or irradiation. Organic animals must have access to the outdoors and must eat organic feed free of animal byproducts. For products with more than one ingredient (cereal, for example), "100% organic" means all the ingredients were organically produced and processed; "organic," at least 95 percent; "made with organic ingredients," at least 70 percent. The government has less-rigorous standards for organic cosmetics and none for organic seafood.
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