Red meat and poultry dominate this ranking because their iron binds easily to the proteins that carry oxygen through your blood. Animal tissues contain haem iron, the form your body absorbs with the fewest obstacles. Plant foods hold non-haem iron, which your gut takes up less readily and only when other compounds in the meal do not block it.
Iron concentrates in organ meats, then muscle meats, then leafy greens and legumes. A single ranking cannot show you absorption rates. Two foods with the same iron count per 100 g deliver different amounts to your bloodstream depending on what else you eat alongside them.
Without animal foods, you lose access to haem iron. Plant sources and fortified foods supply non-haem iron instead, which your body absorbs at a lower rate and loses to interference from phytates, tannins and polyphenols in the same meal. Eating vitamin C alongside iron-rich plants improves uptake substantially. Many fortified cereals and plant milks contain added iron in amounts comparable to meat, but absorption remains the limiting factor on a vegetarian or vegan diet.
FDA daily value: 18 mg
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Showing 1901–1950 of 3,595 foods
| # | Food | Category | Per 100 g | % DV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1901 | Nuts, European chestnuts (sweet), raw, peeled | Nuts and Seeds | 0.94 mg | 5% |
| 1902 | Bread stuffing, cornbread, dry mix, prepared | Baked Products | 0.94 mg | 5% |
| 1903 | Grains, rice, white with pasta and seasonings, cooked | Cereals, Grains and Pasta | 0.94 mg | 5% |
| 1904 | Sauce, Alfredo, dehydrated | Soups, Sauces and Gravies | 0.94 mg | 5% |
| 1905 | Candies, YORK BITES | Sweets | 0.94 mg | 5% |
| 1906 | Kale, frozen, boiled, drained, with salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.94 mg | 5% |
| 1907 | Peas and carrots, frozen, boiled, drained, with salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.94 mg | 5% |
| 1908 | Peas and onions, frozen, boiled, drained, with salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.94 mg | 5% |
| 1909 | Dessert, frozen, FUDGESICLE bar, no sugar added, with artificial sweetener | Sweets | 0.94 mg | 5% |
| 1910 | Cheesecake, plain, with cherry topping, homemade | Baked Products | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1911 | Ravioli, cheese and tomato sauce, frozen, not prepared | Mixed Dishes | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1912 | Prune, dried, uncooked | Fruits and fruit juices | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1913 | Brussels sprouts, frozen, unprepared | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1914 | Kale, frozen, unprepared | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1915 | Tomato products, canned, sauce, with onions | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1916 | Onion rings, breaded, par-fried, frozen, unprepared | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1917 | Squash, winter, acorn, baked | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1918 | Pie, pecan, commercial | Baked Products | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1919 | Icing (frosting), chocolate, creamy, dry mix, prepared with butter | Sweets | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1920 | Dessert, frozen, ice cream, chocolate | Sweets | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1921 | Icing (frosting), chocolate, creamy, dry mix, prepared with margarine | Sweets | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1922 | Pasta, corn, dry | Cereals, Grains and Pasta | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1923 | Candies, soft fruit and nut squares | Sweets | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1924 | Dessert, frozen, ice cream, chocolate, reduced sugar | Sweets | 0.93 mg | 5% |
| 1925 | Candies, peppermint, chocolate coated, mint taste | Sweets | 0.92 mg | 5% |
| 1926 | Apple juice, frozen concentrate, undiluted, without vitamin C | Fruits and fruit juices | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1927 | Apple juice, frozen concentrate, undiluted, added vitamin C | Fruits and fruit juices | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1928 | Asparagus, boiled, drained | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1929 | Beans, mung, mature seeds, sprouted, bean sprouts, raw | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1930 | Nuts, European chestnuts (sweet), roasted | Nuts and Seeds | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1931 | Candies, bars, Symphony | Sweets | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1932 | Grains, corn flour, degermed, unenriched, yellow | Cereals, Grains and Pasta | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1933 | Pasta with sliced franks in tomato sauce, canned | Mixed Dishes | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1934 | Dessert, frozen, FUDGESICLE bar, low fat | Sweets | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1935 | Cattail, narrow leaf shoots, native | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1936 | Asparagus, boiled, drained, with salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1937 | Pasta salad with vegetables, prepared with Italian dressing, homemade | Mixed Dishes | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1938 | Sauce, peanut (made from peanut butter, water, soy sauce) | Soups, Sauces and Gravies | 0.91 mg | 5% |
| 1939 | Kale, boiled, drained, with salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1940 | Lotus root, boiled, drained, with salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1941 | Blueberry, dried, sweetened | Fruits and fruit juices | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1942 | Spaghetti with pomodoro sauce (tomato sauce) | Mixed Dishes | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1943 | Granola bar, chewy, high fibre, oats and chocolate | Baked Products | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1944 | Salad dressing, thousand island, commercial, low calorie | Fats and Oils | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1945 | Apricot, frozen, sweetened | Fruits and fruit juices | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1946 | Pineapple juice, frozen concentrate, unsweetened, undiluted | Fruits and fruit juices | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1947 | Chicory greens (cichorium intybus), raw | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1948 | Kale, boiled, drained | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1949 | Lotus root, boiled, drained | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 0.90 mg | 5% |
| 1950 | Seeds, breadfruit seeds, roasted | Nuts and Seeds | 0.90 mg | 5% |
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