Why does eating healthy cost so much 🤷‍♀️

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  • zeejane03
    zeejane03 Posts: 993 Member
    try2again wrote: »
    zeejane03 wrote: »
    cmriverside wrote: »
    zeejane03 wrote: »
    purplefizzy wrote: »
    Luciicul wrote: »
    Compared to very unhealthy food: it costs more to buy McDonalds for 1 adult than a quiche/meat pies/ dumplings/lamb shanks from Aldi to serve 2-4.

    This.

    I keep my mouth shut in general, IRL, unless specifically asked for input. Diet and spending habits tend to be highly charged emotional topics and people I love and respect make some choices that are somewhat painful for me to watch, but it’s not my place.

    I don’t have kids, I don’t know what that additional responsibility feels like, costs, or what that stress might drive me to do.

    It’s still hard to see friends whi struggle with money and have children (especially those kids with behavioral stuff that could be helped with diet) take the family thru the drive-thru. Feeding a family of 6 fast food seems to cost upwards of $30.

    At my local chain grocery, this could translate to:

    2x rotisserie chicken @ $5 each, a store special (=$10)
    1 giant tub mixed greens ($5)
    English cucumber ($3)
    Pint of grape tomatoes ($4)
    Yogurt-based ranch dressing ($4)
    2 boxes couscous with spice mix (2 for $5)
    =$31, assuming nothing is on sale - and using many higher cost ‘shortcut’ foods (precooked meat, prewashed greens, ready made dressing, flavored just add water grain dish.)

    15 minutes to shop if done at the worst possible time, 10 minutes if better planning.
    @ home:
    Add 5 minutes for prep-
    Boil the water for couscous while pulling the chicken. Add couscous to hot water and cover, then chop the cuke, dump the cucumber and tomato over the spinach. Stir the couscous. Serve.

    Time cost of 20 minutes, minimal kitchen equipment or experience needed, save for the ability to boil water and slice a cucumber.

    I know people who wait longer in the drive-thru, or drive thru multiple places to make the whole family.’

    I get it- everybody is doing their best. People are tired.
    But we pick our battles.

    I think it’s a cultural responsibility to teach people how to prepare simple, sustaining meals.
    Yes, there are areas where this isn’t possible. Let’s change that. Let’s kill off the BS myth that eating well is hard and expensive.

    You also have to factor in multiple people's food preferences though. Of your shopping list example above I'd be the only one who'd actually eat everything on your list, of my family, (and I'd only eat the cucumber if I had to lol). I have 5 different lists of food preferences/likes/dislikes that I have to work with, it's definitely appealing to run through a drive-through and letting everyone order what they want. Just another perspective :)

    Maybe you've created those "food preferences" by allowing it? I ate what everyone else was eating as a kid, or I didn't eat.

    Just saying, we create our own problems. No wonder so many people are "entitled" these days.

    Nope, each of my husband/kids have their own set of likes and dislikes, that are different. My husband also has IBS, one of my kids is lactose intolerant and one has eating issues that stem from his ADHD. And then throw in my specific eating preferences DASH/pescetarian leaning, and meal time can be challenging, to say the least. We have a very small grocery budget and I make it work, but I get the appeal of just going out/running through drive-through.

    I'm surprised that a drive-thru is even a workable option in this situation.

    It is, though when we do go out it's to very specific places. And we use coupons lol.
  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,399 Member
    edited March 2019
    Athijade wrote: »
    I live in Indianapolis (actually in a more expensive area near by). I spent $80 between Aldi and Meijer yesterday. that included groceries for a weeks worth of breakfast, lunch, and dinner plus snacks (yogurt, popcorn, and even ice cream). It also included kitty litter, a bunch of OTC meds I needed (stupid allergies), an extra pack of ground chicken (yay sales), a case of Bubly, and more.

    The OP is being picky and choosy about what they are reporting and sadly people will see it and think "eating healthy" is just too expensive for them.

    Also, eating "healthy" is arbitrary. Some will insist it means bio everything and that's fine, if it's affordable. I feed a family and cook everyday. I stock up on fruits and vegetables, what's on sale and in season. In Rome we have a climate that gives us variable fruits and veggies fresh all year round. I use frozen too. Fish--ocean caught, is expensive, but if I hit a sale, so worth it (it tastes so much better). I do buy farmed fish (depends on where it's raised), and meats are a labyrinth and you have to educate yourself. I grew up on a farm, and we knew where our food came from. Living in the city is different. So if you're eating "healthy" depends on where you are and educating yourself as to your options. I am not a fanatic. I do the best I can without going overboard.
  • mdreddie
    mdreddie Posts: 73 Member
    It depends on if your making your own food. I personally spend $30 on grocery for the week, and I don't eat out because that would bring the expenses up some more, especially since I live New York City.
  • mmnv79
    mmnv79 Posts: 538 Member
    lx1x wrote: »
    She's in UK... May be wrong conversion.. pounds/Euros to dollars.?

    I think 90$ are about £70?

    I guess like everywhere else in the world, prices in supermarkets vary greatly. Also, there's a huge difference if you buy pre-cut fruit and veggies. For example, at Tesco, 200grams of pre-cut carrots costs £1, while 1kg of carrots costs 59p.

    I just went shopping to Tesco and Aldi. I spent £2 on 10 chicken sausages, 39p for a swede, 75p for a bag of oranges, 90p for two round lettuces, £1.50 for 12 tomatoes, 69p for a white cabbage, 79p for a red cabbage, 50p for 1kg of onions,...



  • echmain3
    echmain3 Posts: 231 Member
    Still waiting for a definition of “healthy”.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,097 Member
    csgtdw wrote: »
    I thought it interesting at how many people said that grocery bill was B.S. I call, B.S. on that. If a person wanted to eat clean fresh veggies and untainted meat it would absolutely be expensive. I live in Chicago and haven't seen shrimp for under 9.99/lb in years. Want organic milk $5/gallon. Throw in a basket of fresh organic vegetables and $100 is right around the corner.

    How many pounds of shrimp and gallons of milk are you buying?
  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,399 Member
    echmain3 wrote: »
    Still waiting for a definition of “healthy”.

    Unfortunately you'll wait a long time. No one can agree on a definition. There have been many threads on the topic over the years--nothing, everyone makes up their own.
  • texasredreb
    texasredreb Posts: 541 Member
    My grocery budget went up slightly when I started buying less junk food and more produce. Last night I spent $121.00 for two people, but we had a lot of non-food items as well. That is a slightly low price for the two of us, when stocking up on staples, the bill can go as high as $200.00--but again usually contains 1/4 non-food items. I'm lucky in that I have a freezer full of venison (whitetail and axis) and some fish from a bay fishing excursion--I don't have to buy a lot of meat. I usually try to have chicken, and pork once a week. I never buy frozen or canned fruits and veggies (except for tomato products).
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    OP, I have no idea where you are but in many parts of the world, a diet centered on in-season fruits and vegetables, canned vegetables, grains like oats and rice, frozen fruits and vegetables, pasta, and beans is going to be affordable and provide a lot of nutrients. It's also usually possible for me to get good prices on fruits/vegetables like cabbage, carrots, apples, onions, and hot peppers year-round, as well as things like peanut butter and condiments like soy sauce, mustard, and hot sauce.

    If you can't make healthy meals from the staples in your area, maybe that's a good place to start.
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    Does no one eat beans and rice, beans and cornmeal, cabbage, onions, winter squash, etc., anymore? ;) Lots of traditional peasant foods are still pretty cheap and tasty, and quite affordable even organic if that's your jam. There are local and seasonal variations in what's cheap, especially among the veggies, but bulk dry beans and rice tend to be affordable in most places.

    LOL at picking special upscale-ish choices, then complaining about the cost of being healthy. Price trades off against effort (cook from scratch) and fanciness (cuts of meat, "special" fresh veggies/fruits). Gotta pick your tradeoffs . . . and I don't think health needs to be one of them.

    There was a period in my young adult life where I pretty much lived on homemade beans, homemade whole wheat bread, homemade yogurt (used powdered milk), canned tomatoes (sometimes home canned), homemade canned sauerkraut, fresh cabbage, canned tomatoes, whatever veggies we could garden or get from friends who did, and the like. Cheap, cheap, cheap; pretty healthy. In a gustatory sense, I look back fondly on that time.

    Personally, I think it's common unhealthy ways of eating that are expensive (full menu of fast foods, frozen whole meals, pre-prepped veggies/sauce thingies, snack foods, energy drinks, soda . . . .), let alone restaurants.

    I identify with a lot of this. I eat some type of legumes cooked from dry and cabbage every single day. Love the stuff. We're almost empty nesters, but when I had 3 teenagers at home and they put snack food (chips, crackers, candy) on the grocery list, those were often the most expensive items on the list. You can get a whole chicken for <$5, it will last many meals and it will make a rich delicious stock (much better than any you could buy).
  • MikePTY
    MikePTY Posts: 3,814 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    Does no one eat beans and rice, beans and cornmeal, cabbage, onions, winter squash, etc., anymore? ;) Lots of traditional peasant foods are still pretty cheap and tasty, and quite affordable even organic if that's your jam. There are local and seasonal variations in what's cheap, especially among the veggies, but bulk dry beans and rice tend to be affordable in most places.

    LOL at picking special upscale-ish choices, then complaining about the cost of being healthy. Price trades off against effort (cook from scratch) and fanciness (cuts of meat, "special" fresh veggies/fruits). Gotta pick your tradeoffs . . . and I don't think health needs to be one of them.

    There was a period in my young adult life where I pretty much lived on homemade beans, homemade whole wheat bread, homemade yogurt (used powdered milk), canned tomatoes (sometimes home canned), homemade canned sauerkraut, fresh cabbage, canned tomatoes, whatever veggies we could garden or get from friends who did, and the like. Cheap, cheap, cheap; pretty healthy. In a gustatory sense, I look back fondly on that time.

    Personally, I think it's common unhealthy ways of eating that are expensive (full menu of fast foods, frozen whole meals, pre-prepped veggies/sauce thingies, snack foods, energy drinks, soda . . . .), let alone restaurants.

    Where I live, the local food, which is quite healthy, like rice/beans/fruits/chicken, etc, is the cheap food. The processed stuff, like frozen meals and chips and candy are all imported and super expensive.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    britishbombshell08 wrote: »
    Bought fruits, salad, and shrimp from the grocery store and it came to $90.33 🤷‍♀️🤦‍♀️😂 Oh well, now to devour it all

    Eating a nutritionally sound diet isn't inherently expensive. You're just doing it wrong. Shrimp is the only expensive thing you listed...there are numerous options besides shrimp. Chicken thighs, boneless and skinless are cheap and delicious and a perfectly nutritionally sound choice.

    Still, I'd really like to know what kind of salad and fruit you bought to come out to $93 even with shrimp. You're doing something majorly wrong and need to learn to shop.

    I've never actually done this, but if one was planning on just eating fresh fruit, greens, and shrimp for a week, that could easily add up to $90 for a week just because that would be a whole lot of each of them, especially if you're buying "fancier" fruits and greens. To get an appropriate amount of calories each day on these foods, it would probably be a lot of them, which is why many people would consider it to be a luxury especially in March (assuming OP is some place with cold winters).

  • RelCanonical
    RelCanonical Posts: 3,882 Member
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    britishbombshell08 wrote: »
    Bought fruits, salad, and shrimp from the grocery store and it came to $90.33 🤷‍♀️🤦‍♀️😂 Oh well, now to devour it all

    Eating a nutritionally sound diet isn't inherently expensive. You're just doing it wrong. Shrimp is the only expensive thing you listed...there are numerous options besides shrimp. Chicken thighs, boneless and skinless are cheap and delicious and a perfectly nutritionally sound choice.

    Still, I'd really like to know what kind of salad and fruit you bought to come out to $93 even with shrimp. You're doing something majorly wrong and need to learn to shop.

    I've never actually done this, but if one was planning on just eating fresh fruit, greens, and shrimp for a week, that could easily add up to $90 for a week just because that would be a whole lot of each of them, especially if you're buying "fancier" fruits and greens. To get an appropriate amount of calories each day on these foods, it would probably be a lot of them, which is why many people would consider it to be a luxury especially in March (assuming OP is some place with cold winters).

    Yeah, out of season fruit with prepped shrimp can really add up in price. I remember buying a bag of grapes one time not thinking, and the bag was pretty big (probably almost 2lb) but it was still like $16, lol. That lasted me the week.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    RelCanonical wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    britishbombshell08 wrote: »
    Bought fruits, salad, and shrimp from the grocery store and it came to $90.33 🤷‍♀️🤦‍♀️😂 Oh well, now to devour it all

    Eating a nutritionally sound diet isn't inherently expensive. You're just doing it wrong. Shrimp is the only expensive thing you listed...there are numerous options besides shrimp. Chicken thighs, boneless and skinless are cheap and delicious and a perfectly nutritionally sound choice.

    Still, I'd really like to know what kind of salad and fruit you bought to come out to $93 even with shrimp. You're doing something majorly wrong and need to learn to shop.

    I've never actually done this, but if one was planning on just eating fresh fruit, greens, and shrimp for a week, that could easily add up to $90 for a week just because that would be a whole lot of each of them, especially if you're buying "fancier" fruits and greens. To get an appropriate amount of calories each day on these foods, it would probably be a lot of them, which is why many people would consider it to be a luxury especially in March (assuming OP is some place with cold winters).

    Yeah, out of season fruit with prepped shrimp can really add up in price. I remember buying a bag of grapes one time not thinking, and the bag was pretty big (probably almost 2lb) but it was still like $16, lol. That lasted me the week.

    Yeah, buying prepped shrimp and greens, along with more expensive fruits . . . I can totally see this being possible.

    I've seen organic berries that cost $4-5 for just a tiny container.
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