--- title: Pesticides Residue Affects This Fruit the Most description: Strawberries replaced apples atop the list of fruits and vegetables with the highest level of pesticide residue canonical: https://time.com/4289871/dirty-dozen-pesticides-fruit-vegetable/ author: Justin Worland article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-04-12T14:54:13.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T16:39:01.423Z article:section: Health og:title: Strawberries Have the Most Pesticide Residues: Report og:description: The new dirty dozen shows which fruits and veggies have the most pesticides og:url: https://time.com/4289871/dirty-dozen-pesticides-fruit-vegetable/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt034fcd1e2a2a2ac3/698872103c163939b745ad42/50-healthiest-foods-strawberries.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1400 og:image:height: 788 og:image:alt: healthiest foods, health food, diet, nutrition, time.com stock, strawberries, berry og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Strawberries Have the Most Pesticide Residues: Report twitter:description: The new dirty dozen shows which fruits and veggies have the most pesticides twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt034fcd1e2a2a2ac3/698872103c163939b745ad42/50-healthiest-foods-strawberries.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Strawberries Have the Most Pesticide Residues: Report > Sponsored content. 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There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=86323e7b-e44a-4ce4-8981-9e0c62872c1b&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1)  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Apr 12, 2016 2:54 PM UTC  Danny Kim for TIME  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Apr 12, 2016 2:54 PM UTC Strawberries replaced apples atop the list of fruits and vegetables with the highest level of pesticide residue, according to a new [report](https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/dirty%5Fdozen%5Flist.php). The report, compiled by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), is based on an analysis of tests of more than 35,000 samples of fruits and vegetables conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Apples still rank in second place—after five years in the [top spot](http://time.com/3721985/produce-pesticides/)—followed by nectarines, peaches, celery, grapes, cherries, spinach, tomatoes, red peppers, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, hot peppers and kale/collard greens. The switch at the top follows a European ban on the pesticide diphenylamine that likely also affected U.S. supplies, according to EWG Senior Analyst Sonya Lunder. The U.S.D.A. also released new data on strawberries in time for this year’s ranking that helped catapult the fruit to the top spot. In total, 98% of strawberries tested had some form of pesticide residue. “It’s important to remember that conventional agriculture relies heavily on insecticide,” says Lunder. And “There’s some systematic differences between crops, with some having many pesticides and others being consistently clean.” People who want to avoid pesticides in the fruits and vegetables at the top of the EWG’s ranking should buy organic produce, according to Lunder. 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