fruits and vegetables. This health benefit for consumers joins the list of other well-
documented reasons to buy organic, including the reduction of farmworker and con-
sumer exposures to pesticides, the impacts of pesticides on the environment, and the
prevention of problems associated with hormone and antibiotic use in livestock farm-
ing. Many consumers report that they enjoy the richer flavors in organic food and
instinctively sense that organic foods are better for them; research confirms that there
are good reasons to focus additional scientific resources on gaining a more compre-
hensive understanding of the taste and health benefits associated with elevating aver-
age antioxidant levels in food.^59Fewer Pesticide ResiduesExtensive and highly sensitive pesticide testing carried out by the USDA shows
that conventional fresh fruits and vegetables are: 1) three to more than four times
more likely on average to contain residues than organic produce; 2) eight to eleven
times more likely to contain multiple residues than organic samples; 3) shown to
contain residues at levels three to ten times higher, on average, than corresponding
residues in organic samples.
For many people, consumption of organic fruits and vegetables on most days will
virtually eliminate dietary exposure to pesticides and, in turn, reduce the frequency and
magnitude of one risk factor that can contribute to a variety of diseases and health
problems. The opportunity to nearly eliminate pesticide exposure via diet by consum-
ing organic food is borne out by extensive testing in the United States and other coun-
tries. The pesticide risk reduction benefits of consuming certified organic apples, pears,
peaches, strawberries, cherries, celery, spinach, and sweet bell peppers are particularly
significant, especially for women of childbearing age, infants, and children.^60Pesticide Residues in Organic FoodCertified organic food may not be treated with synthetic pesticides, so why do resi-
dues of synthetic pesticides sometimes appear on organic food? Pesticides are ubiqui-
tous and mobile across agricultural landscapes. Most organic samples contain low
levels of pesticides that were sprayed on nearby conventional crops. Pesticides applied
on conventional crop acreage sometimes drift in the air and settle onto the plants
growing on nearby organic farms. When some pesticides are applied using airplanes,
as little as 25 percent of the applied pesticides settle on the target crops, while three-
quarters drifts off site. When pesticides are applied using ground equipment on days
with modest to moderate winds, losses of 25 percent or more via drift are common.
Pesticides also sometimes travel in fog. Irrigation water also moves across agricultural
landscapes, picking up pesticide contamination along the way.
When residues of synthetic pesticides do show up on organic foods, the levels are
on average lower than corresponding residues in conventional food. The National
Organic Program (NOP) rule calls upon certifiers to investigate cases in which a102 | Pesticides