Strawberries & Undies: The Reason to Go Organic

Strawberries once again topped the “Dirty Dozen™” list - an annual ranking of the pesticide contamination in 47 popular fruits and vegetables. The results are based on tests on more than 38,800 non-organic samples by the US Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration.

So, what is so bad about strawberries?

The type of soil conducive to growing strawberries is also conducive to not-so-yummy things. Therefore, farmers use pesticides to keep unsavory things like bugs and weeds at bay. But these pesticides leave residues on the fruit and can leech into the skin as it grows.

During the testing (which was done on washed strawberries, mind you) it was found that one-third of all conventional strawberry samples contained 10 or more pesticides putting strawberries at the top of the naughty list. And because farmers have figured out how to grow strawberries year round with these pesticides, today the average American eats nearly four times as many fresh strawberries per year as in 1980.

How does this relate to Underwear? I don’t eat my undies.

Cotton is the most commonly-used material for underwear given it wicks away moisture preventing yeast growth. Ewww, but true.  However, in the U.S., cotton ranks in third place in terms of pesticide use after only corn and soybeans. More than 38 million pounds of pesticides were used on cotton in 2014.  Now, you don’t eat your undies but they are against a pretty porous part of your body almost 24/7.  Hmmmm.

But isn’t Organic crazy expensive?

While organic strawberries can cost a pretty penny, the same isn’t necessarily true for organic cotton undies.  By using organic cotton grown in a place ripe for cotton production, companies like Pact reduces the cost of making them (and harm to the planet) and passes on the savings versus marking them up just because they are organic. At that famous sexy-pink-lingerie store, you’ll pay $10.50 to $16.50 for non-organic cotton panties. At Pact, everyday, you only pay $12 for organic undies or can stock up and get 3 pairs for $9 each.

Join the 150,000 people who wear Pact undies and go organic without going broke.