In the US, tolerances for the amount of pesticide residue that may remain on food are set by the EPA, and measures are taken to keep pesticide residues below the tolerances. The US EPA has a web page for the  allowable tolerances. In order to assess the risks associated with pesticides on human health, the EPA analyzed individual pesticide active ingredients as well as the common toxic effect that groups of pesticides have, called the cumulative risk assessment. Limits that the EPA sets on pesticides before approving them includes a determination of how often the pesticide should be used and how it should be used, in order to protect the public and the environment. In the US, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and USDA also routinely check food for the actual levels of pesticide residues.
A US organic food advocacy group, the Environmental Working Group, is known for creating a list of fruits and vegetables referred to as the Dirty Dozen; it lists produce with the highest number of distinct pesticide residues  or most samples with residue detected in USDA data. This list is generally considered misleading and lacks scientific credibility because it lists detections without accounting for the risk of the usually small amount of each residue with respect to consumer health. In 2016, over 99% of samples of US produce had no pesticide residue or had residue levels well below the EPA tolerance levels for each pesticide.