Tuesday, May 09, 2006

The company I work for has a newsletter, and my LA writer has skipped town, so today I have to pretend like I still live in LA so that I can write--with authority--about this month's topic, the state of environmentalism there.

So, living in LA but not, I have been researching different things about green LA. I came across a shopper's guide to pesticides in produce, produced by the Environmental Working Group, and I thought I'd share it, because I never wash my grapes, and apparantly this is a horrible idea.

EWG tested a lot and fruits and vegetables after washing them in the manner that most consumers do--and I assume this goes beyond my quick shower under the faucet method--and came up with the top and bottom 12 as far as pesticide contamination.

The 12 fruits and veggies highest in pesticides after being washed:

1. apples
2. bell peppers
3. celery
4. cherries
5. grapes (imported)
6. nectarines
7. peaches
8. pears
9. potatoes
10. red raspberries
11. spinach
12. strawberries

The 12 fruits and veggies lowest in pesticides after being washed:

1. asparagus
2. avocados
3. bananas
4. broccoli
5. cauliflower
6. corn (sweet)
7. kiwi
8. mangos
9. onions
10. papaya
11. pineapples
12. peas (sweet)

So, it seems like if you can go organic of those first 12, you should. And going organic on the second 12 wouldn't be bad, either. Supporting organic and sustainable farming is always good thing, but, at least for that second set, isn't necessarily necessary to ward off cancer, birth defects, third arms, etc. The first set, though--I think it's got to be organic grapes, or else. X-men is great, but I'll pass on the chemical mutations, thanks.

Also, while you're at it, this Q&A with a Florida farmworker/activist in Grist Magazine is really interesting, taking the pesticide/organic farming issue and wrapping it up with the immigrant issue for a double dose of depression/activist incentive, depending on your general world outlook.