Shopping High/Low: The Clean 15 & Dirty Dozen

I get it. Organic produce can be expensive. I once spent more in a month on cucumbers than I did on my cable bill. My produce spending made me so embarrassed that I would tell the checkout dude that I didn’t need a receipt. I really didn’t want a record of my organic kale and blueberry shopping spree.

Since then, I’ve wised up. I realized that buying organic is an investment in my health (my man’s words), and I also started using the EWG’s (Environmental Working Group) Clean 15 and Dirty Dozen as a guide. The smartypants at the EWG put together a list of the fruits and veggies that have the most pesticide residue (Dirty Dozen) and should be bought organic, as well as the ones with the least (Clean 15). So you have the tools you need to mix and match as you figure out what works best for your budget.

How many times have you mixed a thrift-store find with a designer piece? Probably lots. Same thing here. So buy those organic strawberries, then go conventional with your avocados. It doesn’t have to be all-organic or nothing. To make it even easier, I’ve put together some handy guides that you can print out and put in your wallet (it’s the size of a business card when you fold it in half).

Find out more about the EWG’s shopping guide here: EWG.

P.S. And those expensive cucumbers? Well, they’re part of the Dirty Dozen. But guess what? You can peel those suckers. So a lot of times I’ll go conventional. I mean, Girls is back on HBO…I need the extra dough for cable.

What are other ways you get creative with your produce shopping? Share your secrets in the comments!