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 1951–2000 of 4,377 foods
| # | Food | Category | Per 100 g | % DV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Potatoes, microwaved, cooked, in skin, flesh and skin, with salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.24 mg | 7% |
| 1952 | Whey, acid, dried | Dairy and Egg Products | 1.24 mg | 7% |
| 1953 | Infant formula, ABBOTT NUTRITION, SIMILAC, SENSITIVE (LACTOSE FREE) ready-to-feed, with ARA and DHA | Baby Foods | 1.24 mg | 7% |
| 1954 | Cookies, sugar wafer, chocolate-covered | Baked Products | 1.24 mg | 7% |
| 1955 | Infant formula, ABBOTT NUTRITION, SIMILAC NEOSURE, ready-to-feed, with ARA and DHA | Baby Foods | 1.23 mg | 7% |
| 1956 | Pie, blueberry, prepared from recipe | Baked Products | 1.23 mg | 7% |
| 1957 | Tortillas, ready-to-bake or -fry, corn | Baked Products | 1.23 mg | 7% |
| 1958 | Chickpeas (garbanzo beans, bengal gram), mature seeds, canned, solids and liquids | Legumes and Legume Products | 1.23 mg | 7% |
| 1959 | Chickpeas (garbanzo beans, bengal gram), mature seeds, canned, solids and liquids, low sodium | Legumes and Legume Products | 1.23 mg | 7% |
| 1960 | Semolina, unenriched | Cereal Grains and Pasta | 1.23 mg | 7% |
| 1961 | Baking chocolate, MARS SNACKFOOD US, M&M's Milk Chocolate Mini Baking Bits | Sweets | 1.23 mg | 7% |
| 1962 | Candies, MARS SNACKFOOD US, M&M's MINIs Milk Chocolate Candies | Sweets | 1.23 mg | 7% |
| 1963 | Candies, REESE'S NUTRAGEOUS Candy Bar | Sweets | 1.23 mg | 7% |
| 1964 | Tamales (Navajo) | American Indian/Alaska Native Foods | 1.22 mg | 7% |
| 1965 | Restaurant, Latino, Arroz con habichuelas colorados (Rice And Red Beans) | Restaurant Foods | 1.22 mg | 7% |
| 1966 | Candies, peanut brittle, prepared-from-recipe | Sweets | 1.22 mg | 7% |
| 1967 | Onions, welsh, raw | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.22 mg | 7% |
| 1968 | Pie, fried pies, fruit | Baked Products | 1.22 mg | 7% |
| 1969 | Pie, fried pies, cherry | Baked Products | 1.22 mg | 7% |
| 1970 | Pie, fried pies, lemon | Baked Products | 1.22 mg | 7% |
| 1971 | Pie, apple, commercially prepared, unenriched flour | Baked Products | 1.21 mg | 7% |
| 1972 | Stew, mutton, corn, squash (Navajo) | American Indian/Alaska Native Foods | 1.21 mg | 7% |
| 1973 | Arrowhead, cooked, boiled, drained, with salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.21 mg | 7% |
| 1974 | Candies, REESE'S Peanut Butter Cups | Sweets | 1.21 mg | 7% |
| 1975 | Wocas, tuber, cooked, Oregon, yellow pond lily (Klamath) | American Indian/Alaska Native Foods | 1.21 mg | 7% |
| 1976 | Arrowhead, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.21 mg | 7% |
| 1977 | Potatoes, mashed, dehydrated, flakes without milk, dry form | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.21 mg | 7% |
| 1978 | Nuts, acorn flour, full fat | Nut and Seed Products | 1.21 mg | 7% |
| 1979 | Ice cream bar, covered with chocolate and nuts | Dairy and Egg Products | 1.21 mg | 7% |
| 1980 | Snacks, corn-based, extruded, chips, plain | Snacks | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1981 | Candies, MARS SNACKFOOD US, MILKY WAY Midnight Bar | Sweets | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1982 | Candies, 5TH AVENUE Candy Bar | Sweets | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1983 | Lettuce, red leaf, raw | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1984 | Brussels sprouts, cooked, boiled, drained, with salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1985 | Candies, MARS SNACKFOOD US, MILKY WAY Caramels. dark chocolate covered | Sweets | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1986 | Snacks, taro chips | Snacks | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1987 | Rice, white, long-grain, regular, enriched, cooked | Cereal Grains and Pasta | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1988 | Peaches, dried, sulfured, stewed, with added sugar | Fruits and Fruit Juices | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1989 | Lambsquarters, raw | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1990 | Candies, NESTLE, RAISINETS Chocolate Covered Raisins | Sweets | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1991 | Rice, white, long-grain, regular, cooked, enriched, with salt | Cereal Grains and Pasta | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1992 | Brussels sprouts, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1993 | Peas, green, canned, seasoned, solids and liquids | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1994 | Pokeberry shoots, (poke), cooked, boiled, drained, without salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1995 | Vinespinach, (basella), raw | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1996 | Peppers, hot chili, green, raw | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1997 | Shallots, raw | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1998 | Pokeberry shoots, (poke), cooked, boiled, drained, with salt | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 1999 | Lupins, mature seeds, cooked, boiled, without salt | Legumes and Legume Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
| 2000 | Vitasoy USA, Organic Nasoya Firm Tofu | Legumes and Legume Products | 1.20 mg | 7% |
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