PFAS in Pesticides: Which Produce Has the Most (2026 List) | Pfas | Scrunchy Living

PFAS in Pesticides: Which Produce Has the Most (2026 List)

PFAS aren't only in nonstick pans and takeout wrappers. Some of the most widely used fungicides and insecticides sprayed on fruits and vegetables meet the international definition of a PFAS "forever chemical," and in 2026 one of them became the single most frequently detected pesticide on U.S. produce. California noticed: on September 28, 2026, Governor Newsom signed the first state law requiring PFAS pesticides to be identified and tracked. If you're pregnant, nursing, or feeding a toddler, here's what that means for your grocery cart, which crops carry the most, and how to cut the exposure without buying everything organic.

TL;DR:
- Fludioxonil, a PFAS fungicide, was found on 14% of all produce samples in EWG's 2026 analysis, making it the most common pesticide on U.S. fruits and vegetables. Two more PFAS pesticides, fluopyram and bifenthrin, are in the top ten.
- PFAS pesticides turned up on 63% of Dirty Dozen samples. Spinach, kale and other greens, strawberries, and grapes lead the list.
- Washing under running water helps with surface residue, and a baking-soda soak helps more, but neither reaches pesticide that has moved into the flesh. Buying organic for the top few crops does.

Key Takeaways

  • PFAS pesticides are mainstream, not fringe. EWG's 2026 Shopper's Guide found pesticides on 96% of Dirty Dozen samples, 203 different pesticides in total, and PFAS pesticides specifically on 63% of those samples.
  • California is the first state to track them. AB 1603, signed September 28, 2026, requires the state to flag PFAS pesticides in its public use-reporting database and publish a full list by January 1, 2028. EWG's California testing found PFAS pesticide residue on 37% of non-organic samples and on more than 90% of non-organic peaches, nectarines, and plums.
  • Three swaps do most of the work. Buying organic spinach, kale, and strawberries removes the three highest-residue crops most families eat weekly. Frozen organic versions cost a fraction of fresh.

What Is a PFAS Pesticide?

A PFAS pesticide is any crop chemical whose molecule contains at least one fully fluorinated carbon atom, which is the international (OECD) definition of a per- or polyfluoroalkyl substance. The carbon-fluorine bond is what makes these chemicals effective and persistent, and it's the same bond that makes nonstick coatings and stain repellents last for decades.

Agrochemical companies have added fluorine to pesticides for years because it makes them more stable and potent. The result is that a growing share of registered fungicides, insecticides, and herbicides qualify as PFAS, even though they're regulated as pesticides rather than as "forever chemicals." According to EWG's 2026 analysis, fludioxonil, a fungicide used after harvest to prevent rot, was the most frequently detected pesticide overall, found on 14% of all produce samples. Fluopyram (another fungicide) and bifenthrin (an insecticide) were also among the ten most common.

The research gaps matter here. EWG notes that toxicity testing for these pesticides, especially immunotoxicity, is incomplete, and that many break down into trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), an ultra-short-chain PFAS now rising in people and water with early signals of reproductive toxicity.

What this means for your family: "Pesticide residue" on produce increasingly means PFAS residue. The crops with the most pesticides are, by and large, the crops with the most PFAS.

Why Does This Matter More in Pregnancy and Early Childhood?

PFAS as a class have been associated with thyroid disruption, altered immune response in infants, reduced fertility, and pregnancy complications, and they cross the placenta. ACOG's position is that reducing exposure to toxic environmental chemicals before and during pregnancy is a legitimate part of prenatal care.

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences summarizes the evidence on PFAS: associations with thyroid hormone disruption, lower infant birth weight, reduced vaccine response in children, and higher cholesterol, among other effects. Most of that research is on legacy PFAS like PFOA and PFOS rather than on fluorinated pesticides specifically, which is exactly why EWG and California legislators are pushing for tracking: no one yet knows how much of a pregnant woman's PFAS load comes from produce.

ACOG's 2021 committee opinion on environmental exposures states that prenatal exposure to toxic chemicals can have lasting effects on maternal and child health and encourages clinicians to help patients reduce exposures. Pesticides are one of the categories it names.

What this means for your family: You don't need certainty about fluorinated pesticides specifically to act. The crops that carry them are known, and the swap is the same one you'd make for conventional pesticides.

Which Produce Carries the Most PFAS Pesticides?

The 2026 Dirty Dozen, in EWG's order: spinach; kale, collard, and mustard greens; strawberries; grapes; nectarines; peaches; cherries; apples; blackberries; pears; potatoes; and blueberries, with green beans and bell and hot peppers flagged as additional concerns. PFAS pesticides were found on 63% of samples across this list.

A few specifics worth knowing from the 2026 guide:

  • Nearly all Dirty Dozen samples (96%) carried at least one pesticide, and most carried several.
  • Leafy greens (spinach, kale, collards, mustard greens) top the list again. Their large surface area holds spray, and they're often eaten raw.
  • Peaches, nectarines, and plums stood out in EWG's separate California testing, with PFAS pesticide residue on more than 90% of non-organic samples. Fludioxonil is applied to stone fruit after harvest, which is why it's so common.
  • Potatoes and blackberries are the newcomers most people don't expect. Blackberries joined the list after the USDA tested them for the first time.

Which produce is lowest in pesticides?

The 2026 Clean Fifteen: pineapple, sweet corn, avocados, papaya, onions, frozen sweet peas, asparagus, cabbage, cauliflower, watermelon, mangoes, bananas, carrots, mushrooms, and kiwi. Almost 60% of samples had no detectable pesticide at all, and only 16% had two or more.

These are the crops where paying for organic buys you the least. Thick peels, husks, and rinds do most of the work.

SCRUNCHY MOM TIP: Screenshot both lists. When you're deciding where the organic dollars go this week, the rule is simple: top of the Dirty Dozen gets organic, anything on the Clean Fifteen can be conventional.

Does Washing Remove PFAS Pesticides?

Partly. Rinsing under running water removes dirt and some surface residue, and a 2017 study found a baking-soda soak removed far more surface pesticide from apples than water or bleach. But pesticide that has penetrated the peel or been taken up by the plant stays put. Washing is worth doing; it is not a substitute for buying organic on the worst crops.

The study, published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, applied two pesticides to apples and compared washes. A 1% baking soda solution (about one teaspoon per two cups of water) removed essentially all surface residue after a 12 to 15 minute soak, outperforming plain water and a bleach solution. The catch: a portion of each pesticide had already moved into the apple's flesh, and no wash reached it. Systemic pesticides, which include several PFAS fungicides, are designed to move through plant tissue.

For what to actually do at the sink, the FDA's produce guidance is the baseline: wash under cool running water, rub firm produce, and skip soap, detergent, and commercial produce washes, which produce can absorb and which aren't approved for food. A baking-soda soak fits within that advice; a soap-based wash does not.

What this means for your family: Wash everything, soak the Dirty Dozen items you buy conventional in baking-soda water when you have 15 minutes, and accept that for spinach, kale, and strawberries the organic version is the real fix.

How to Reduce PFAS Pesticide Exposure on a Real Budget

Three moves, in order of impact: buy organic for spinach, kale, and strawberries; use frozen organic to make that affordable; keep buying Clean Fifteen items conventional and put the savings toward the first two.

Good, better, best

Level What you do Cost impact
Good Rinse all produce under running water; baking-soda soak for conventional Dirty Dozen items None
Better Organic for your top three Dirty Dozen crops (most families: spinach, kale, strawberries) Small, offset by buying Clean Fifteen conventional
Best Organic for the full Dirty Dozen plus stone fruit; conventional for the Clean Fifteen Moderate

If you're on a tight budget: frozen organic spinach and frozen organic strawberries are usually the cheapest organic items in the store, and they're nutritionally equivalent to fresh. Two bags a week covers smoothies, oatmeal, and cooked greens for a family.

Where to find it

  • Earthbound Farm Organic sells organic spinach, kale, salad greens, and frozen fruit at most mainstream grocers. (It's a Taylor Farms brand; its organic greens were not part of the 2026 Cyclospora recall, and the same wash-at-home rules apply.)
  • Organic Girl organic greens and herbs, widely stocked and reasonably priced.
  • Azure Standard delivers bulk organic frozen fruit and vegetables through community drop points, the cheapest route for families who go through a lot.

Start here this week: switch one item. If you buy strawberries every week, make this week's container organic. One repeated decision beats an overhaul you abandon.

What Does California's New PFAS Pesticide Law Actually Do?

AB 1603 requires the California Department of Pesticide Regulation to identify which registered pesticides are PFAS, flag them in the state's public pesticide-use database so applications can be tracked over time, and publish the full list by January 1, 2028. It does not ban anything, but it creates the first public record of where and how much PFAS pesticide is sprayed.

California grows a large share of the nation's fruits, nuts, and vegetables, so the data will matter well beyond the state. EWG, which sponsored the bill, expects the tracking to show how widespread use is and to put pressure on federal regulators, who currently evaluate these chemicals as pesticides without weighing their persistence as PFAS.

What this means for your family: Nothing changes on the shelf yet. The practical value is that by 2028 you'll be able to see which crops and regions use the most PFAS pesticides, and the Dirty Dozen will likely get more precise about it.

Good Brands to Buy

  • Earthbound Farm Organic — organic spinach, kale, salad greens, and frozen fruit; widely available
  • Organic Girl — organic greens and herbs at most major chains
  • Azure Standard — bulk organic frozen produce by community delivery; best per-pound price for families

FAQ

Q: Does organic produce have PFAS pesticides on it?

Organic standards prohibit synthetic pesticides, which includes the fluorinated fungicides and insecticides that qualify as PFAS, so organic produce should not be sprayed with them. Drift from neighboring conventional fields and contaminated irrigation water can still leave trace residue, which is why organic reduces exposure rather than eliminating it. In EWG's testing, organic samples consistently carry far fewer and lower residues than conventional. For the top Dirty Dozen crops, that difference is large enough to be the single most effective step you can take.

Q: Is frozen organic produce as good as fresh for avoiding PFAS pesticides?

Yes. Organic certification applies the same way to frozen and fresh, and frozen produce is typically picked ripe and flash-frozen within hours, so nutrition is comparable. Frozen organic spinach and strawberries are often less than half the price of fresh organic, which makes them the most practical way to move two of the highest-residue crops to organic without changing your grocery budget.

Q: Can I just wash conventional spinach and strawberries really well instead?

Washing reduces surface residue and is always worth doing, and a baking-soda soak removes more than water alone. But both spinach and strawberries are soft, porous, and often treated with systemic pesticides that move into the tissue, where no wash reaches. For those two crops in particular, washing conventional is a meaningful improvement over not washing, and organic is a meaningful improvement over washing.

Q: Should I stop eating fruits and vegetables while pregnant to avoid this?

No, and EWG says the same thing in its own guide: eating plenty of fruits and vegetables remains essential for health, and the benefits outweigh the pesticide risk even for conventional produce. The point of the Dirty Dozen is to direct your organic budget, not to scare you off produce. Keep eating the greens and berries; just buy the top few organic when you can.

Q: Which PFAS pesticides should I know by name?

Fludioxonil (a post-harvest fungicide, the most detected pesticide overall in 2026), fluopyram (a fungicide sold under brand names like Luna), and bifenthrin (an insecticide) are the three that appear in EWG's top ten. You won't see them on a produce label, which is the problem California's law is meant to address. Until the state list is published in 2028, the practical proxy is the Dirty Dozen.

About the Author

Jenn Smith, RN BSN, is a registered nurse, mom, and co-founder of Scrunchy Living. She writes evidence-based guides to non-toxic living, pregnancy-safe products, and clean home practices for modern families.

Shop These Recommendations

Product Why It's Worth It Amazon
Earthbound Farm Organic Organic spinach, kale, salad greens, and frozen fruit at mainstream grocers; the easiest Dirty Dozen swap.
Organic Girl Organic greens and herbs, widely stocked and triple-washed (rinse at home anyway).
Azure Standard Bulk organic frozen fruit and vegetables delivered through community drops; lowest per-pound price for families.

From Scrunchy Living: ScrunchyAI is our AI-powered guide to non-toxic living — scan ingredient labels, compare products, and get personalized answers for your home and family. Start your free 14-day trial →

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Medical Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider with questions about your pregnancy, health, or your child's health. Scrunchy Living is not a medical practice and does not diagnose or treat any condition.

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