PORTLAND, Ore. - If you want to get on the green bandwagon, but sticker prices have you seeing red, there are a few things you should know before heading to the grocery store to buy organic food.
    
There are some green items, such as organic seafood, that aren't worth the extra cost if health is your main concern, experts say.

"It's not worth spending extra for quote-unquote organic seafood," said Lisa Lee Freeman of Consumer Reports ShopSmart Magazine. "There is no such thing because the government has no standards for what organic seafood means."
    
According to the Food and Drug Administration, currently there is no government definition for what organic seafood should be, so for now it doesn't exist.

And when shopping for eggs, poultry and pork, don't pay extra for a sticker that says "hormone free." The government already requires these items to be hormone free.

When it comes to produce, you don't always have to go organic.

"It's best to buy the organics when the conventional versions of them are very loaded with pesticides," Freeman said.

So when buying things like cranberries, peaches, strawberries and bell peppers, organic is a good idea. There is less of a need when it comes to bananas, citrus fruit or onions, because the outer skins are peeled off and not eaten. 

If you aren't buying organic produce, it's safer to stick with domestically grown food.

"One other thing that we found is that fruits and veggies that are imported tend to have more pesticides than those that are domestically grown," Freeman said.
    
Another thing to note: buying organic wine doesn't mean it's healthier for you. And the process used to make the wine already removes any pesticide residue.

But there are benefits:

"They are not allowed to use heavy duty pesticides or synthetic fertilizers so it's not a bad idea to buy organic wine, especially if you are concerned about the environment," Freeman said.

For a closer look at the fruits and vegetables that are likely to have higher pesticide residues, click here.