When you are buying produce, you are most likely more concerned about the look and feel of the product than the Price Look Up (PLU) sticker. While squeezing, flicking, smelling and all those other tried-and-true techniques of examining produce work well, that little sticker actually offers some useful information.
If you are looking for organic fruit, make sure your sticker has a five-digit number that starts with the number nine. If it doesn't, it's not organic.
Five-digit codes that begin with the number eight are cause for a little more concern. These codes mean that the produce was genetically engineered. That means your seemingly harmless piece of fruit is the product of manipulated genes. Sure, it may be bigger and have a prettier color than the organic fruit, but that is a sign of genetic and chemical manipulation, not better taste or quality.
PLU stickers with four-digit codes that begin with the numbers three or four were conventionally grown. Produce with these stickers has been sprayed with chemical pesticides and weed killers. Mmmm...pesticides and chemicals! That's what we look for in our salads!
Are you curious about the produce hanging out in your fridge? You can enter any PLU code here to get all the details on fruits and veggies before the first bite.
