Organic/Inorganic foods? Whats what?!

[wodesorel]

Washing helps, but peeling will give you the most benefit since the majority of pesticides are on the skins.

[Crabber85]

Point of interest fruits like apples that grow on trees or shrubs that have been sprayed while the fruit developed are at an even greater risk because the pesticides and fertilizers are getting drawn up through the parent plant and incorporated into the meat of the fruit itself which is why Apples are the number one offender because the ones that are conventionally grown tend to be loaded with chemicals from the skins all the way through to the cores.

The same can be said of conventionally grown citrus fruits just food for thought.

[Jackolope]

Okay here's the real answer - It doesn't matter.
The crabs will survive no matter what. You want to avoid food with a lot of preservatives (no Milky Ways LOL), but most of the time they do fine. You are paying extra for the organic packaging and that's it. Just wash your vegetables thoroughly always. I remember a while back someone on here was asking if they should buy organic bananas for their crabs. The regular ones work just as well.

[wodesorel]

You've obviously never lost a colony of pets to pesticide infected foods. It DOES matter, although I don't think it should be a main worry and with normal practices (washing, peeling, etc) it's not a huge deal. Some thought should always be given to what they are eating, not matter what it is. They are arthropods and humans have been coming up with ways to kill them for decades because we consider them pests, not pets. There is not a lot of oversight on what is going onto our food because it takes huge amounts to affect people. It only takes a bit to kill a crab.

[Jackolope]

No I've never lost a crab or colony to pesticides. I wash my fruits/vegetables, a point you made in you second sentence ("although I don't think it should be a main worry and with normal practices (washing, peeling, etc) it's not a huge deal."). Don't get me wrong I am against the pesticides we use on our food. I believe that corporations like Monsanto are the devil and that the pesticides are killing the bees while also causing a flourish in childhood food allergies. It's just that when it comes to crabs, just like when it comes to your body or your kids, you should practice healthy choices, but you don't have to go overboard. I don't buy all organic foods for my crabs or even myself because frankly I couldn't afford it. They eat what I had for dinner or some freeze dried bugs, never those pellets. Assuming you wash your vegetables, which you should do even if they come out of your garden, then you shouldn't have any issue. That is what I am saying. If it makes you feel better I try to avoid GMOs.

[Crabber85]

I've never lost any crabs due to pesticide poisoning from the fruits and veggies I have offered mainly because I try to stick with the ones that are from reputable sources mostly local and items like citrus that come from out of the country I try to make sure the fruit has been rinsed well and then the skin removed just as a precaution.

I also stay away from the bigger offenders like apples unless they are organic and I can get organic apples that are locally grown for about sixty cents an apple which is not so bad and because I know the farmers I can trust that they are doing what they are supposed to in regards to growing their crops using green alternatives.

Depending on your locality and region certain fruits and veggies maybe put through additional treatment processes after being harvested to prevent or discourage insect activity so that may be something to think about.

I know my local conventional farms use a lot of copper sulfate on their produce to discourage insect activity and as well all know copper sulfate is one of the big three offenders for hermitcrab safety.