A lot of veg is ‘toxic’ but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t eat it

There are claims online that most of the fruit and veg we eat is toxic. Though there is some truth to this, it doesn’t mean you should stop eating your greens, writes James Wong

By James Wong

AFTER decades of celebrating the benefits of fruit and veg, some corners of the foodie media are voicing a radical new claim: fresh produce is not only unnecessary for human health, it is actually quite toxic. With countless devotees, this school of thought argues that most plants have evolved elaborate toxins to defend themselves from predation, which makes animal-based foods the safer and healthier choice.

One statistic circulating on social media is that 98.8 per cent of plants are toxic whereas 99.9 per cent of animals are edible. As strange as it may seem, this narrative – at …