What are the pros and cons of eating organic food?

We are all painfully aware of the impact that the cost-of-living has been having on the price of food. For some of us, sadly, this means struggling to be able to afford enough food; for others it means cutting back and making choices about the quality of food we can buy.

Organic food, however, while often pricier (even before the eye-watering price hikes for food) has seen a healthy rise in sales over past years, as awareness of health and sustainability have become more apparent across the UK. According to the Soil Association, the organic market experienced 1.6 per cent growth in sales in 2022, as people spent nearly £8.5 million on organic produce daily.

The question is, should we be eating organic food when we can, or is it a waste of money? If we look at fruit and vegetables, we know that pesticides commonly used on the plants we eat work to destroy fungus, weeds, insects, and bacteria and can also have a negative impact on the environment. But what impact does it have on our health?

Eating more fruits and vegetables, organic or not, is most certainly a good idea for our collective health, but knowing how much these pesticides can affect us, and which fruit and vegetables are most affected is also important. Pesticide levels in foods are regulated by the likes of the World Health Organization and the European Food Safety Authority, which have established safety limits for pesticides in the food chain, so, in theory, any chemicals that we are exposed to shouldn’t cause harm.

But one issue with these regulations is that some pesticides contain heavy metals such as copper, that can build up in the body over time and increase risks of chronic diseases. Another consideration is that safety limits are often established using industry funded studies, which may be biased. Certainly, there are studies that have found that pesticides may be linked to an increase in chronic diseases and hormone imbalances in adults as well as children.

Before we make up our minds, it is worth noting that organic produce is also often sprayed with bio and organic pesticides, which impact not only the environment but potentially our health. The argument has also been made that these organic pesticides are less effective than their synthetic counterparts and therefore may be used more often and at higher doses. There is no doubt that both organic and non-organic foods have their pros and cons, but that eating plenty of fruit and vegetables can help to improve gut health, resilience, and liver function, all of which supports healthy detoxification of chemicals and toxins that we ingest.

If you're fortunate enough to have the option to grow some vegetables of your own, you can choose to grow those which would normally contain the highest pesticides. That way you could maximise your intake of fully organic foods. Furthermore, levels of pesticides in foods can be reduced by cooking, peeling, and simply rinsing in water, although more robust washing techniques can be more thorough in reducing the residues.

Great British Life: Washing fruit and vegetables can help to remove residues of chemical persticides and herbicides. Photo: Getty Images Washing fruit and vegetables can help to remove residues of chemical persticides and herbicides. Photo: Getty Images

Here are three washing methods:

Soak in saltwater using Himalayan salt or sea salt for 20 minutes. Rinse with water afterwards.

Use 1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda to 2 cups of water and soak for 15 minutes. Rinse with water afterwards

Soak in any type of vinegar and water for 20 minutes using 1 part vinegar to 4 parts water.

To help make a bit more sense of which fruits and vegetables are the ones to watch, Pesticide Action Network UK devises and updates a list of the Dirty Dozen and the Clean Fifteen, fruits and vegetables with the highest and lowest levels of pesticide residues. This is really useful if we don’t have access to a wide range of organic fruit and vegetables, and for deciding which varieties we might want to splash out on and go organic, or grow ourselves.

The Dirty Dozen

Grapefruit – luckily the peel forms a barrier, and the pesticides accumulate on the outer surface, but the skin isn’t impermeable and some chemicals may be absorbed.

Soft citrus – clementines, satsumas and mandarins

Strawberries – these are at the top of the list, year after year, as the plant with one of the highest levels of pesticide residues. As we come up to Wimbledon season, get washing those strawberries, or buy organic if you can.

Oranges

Sultanas and raisins – this would be a good one to buy organic as they are tricky to wash effectively.

Herbs

Pre-packed salads

Grapes

Lemons

Pears

Peaches and nectarines

Spinach

The Clean 15

This list by the Environmental Working Group highlights produce with the least chemical residue.

Avocado