How much does good food cost?
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heres the thing...do not assume your experience is the same as everyone elses
food costs vary all over the world some people are lucky enough to have access to"healthy" foods for a good price a lot of people are not that lucky so yes it can be very very expensive0 -
I had a few minutes to think and I believe I am took this more on a tangent than what the originator intended. I was more talking about those people who complain tht to lose weight they need to spend more $$ and used expenses as an excuse as to why they cannot lose weight, which is totally false. I let threads from other message boards interfere with the subject at hand.
I dont know about Hawaii, never been.Hi,
I was wondering now and then why people complained about the costs of dieting..
Now a new fried wrote that he has to pay 3 dollars for an apple?!?!?
Well, I really hope it is not like this everywhere...
I live in Italy, and I lived in the UK, and the food is by no means as expensive as that...
So, my questions, out of curiosity... how much does "good" food cost where you live?
Fresh fruit and vegs, chicken and pork meat, legumes, potatoes, rice...
Do you really find that eating healthy is more expensive than not?
This is my biggest pet peeve when it comes to people who want to lose weight, go on a diet, etc when they wonder about the high price of 'healthy food.
I have yo yo'd over the years. I am not proud of it, but it has happened. I master losing weight buy eating better, eating less and exercising. It is just maintaining that has killed me. I am giving it one more go around.
When people complain and say they cannot lose weight because it is too expensive...that is complete BS.
YOu can easily lose weight, and gain more $$ in your bank account. It really goes hand in hand. People dont need to go out and buy fancy "healty" food to lose weight.
When I lose weight I make $$$$$.
I spend sooo much less on food. How? Because you eat less. MUCH, MUCH, MUCH less fast food, much less drinks. much less eating out, much, much less $$ spend when you eat less/healthier
I don't know about where you live but in Hawaii, where I live, I without a doubt spend less when I grab fast food. Food is expensive, far more expensive than on the mainland, but fast food prices remain fairly consistent with what they are on the mainland.
That aside, not everyone who gains weight eats fast food so for some what you experience just isn't the case.
My general point in this though when people complain that eating healthy and losing weight is just too expensive.
Most people can go to the grocery and get a week's worth of food, even healthier food, and spend much less on food than those people who eat out often. The obesity epedemic for some many people also drains their pocket books with the high prices of eating out/ordering in.
Case in point this past weekend. My wife just wanted to get breakfast for all of us at McDonalds or BK. $3-$4 a person it would cost. Instead I made some good breakfast, for a fraction of the cost, for the whole family.
Same thing for dinner. Chicket breasts on the grill, vegetables and a side salad...bought it all at the local market and it came to much less than what you could really get at even a fast food restaurant.
My main point is this.....people who say they cannot lose weight because it is too expensive to buy healthy food are just full of it.
And again, that's not true everywhere. Hawaii is one of the poorest states in the union, people are often cramming 4 generations of a family into a 3 bedroom house and just barely getting by. In that situation spending a few bucks a person at BK is going to be cheaper than anything else.
That said, you can lose weight eating BK or McDonalds, so if the point to fast food as the reason they can't lose weight that's nonsense. They could certainly lose weight eating solely fast food if they were so inclined (And depending on location is may be cheaper than going to the grocery store.)
Sure, you can lose weight by eating at Bk or McDonalds. That is 100% true.
But you know how you do it?
Eat less.
Eat less = spending less = losing weight isnt too expensive.
Losing weight isn't expensive, no. I believe I actually said as much. Changing ones food habits to so called 'healthy food' can certainly be expensive. Which is the argument being posed in this thread, is it not? Was that not while you told me that you could have chicken, veg, and a salad for less than you'd pay for fast food, because you're saying it's cheaper to eat healthy at home than to eat out?
Or was that just a fun anecdote for the sake of things?
I personall grow some food in my small garden that keeps some veggi costs down. The good thing about living in rural America, aka God's country, is that we are surrounded by agriculture. If I want apples? Go to the apple orchard and pay next to nothing. Corn on the cob? $1.50 a dozen at many farmers markets and such. Want many other fresh foods at a good cost? Go to the Amish stores.
So I do apologize for taking it off track, and that $$ should never be an excuse not to lose weight0 -
Buy the fruits and veggies that are on sale. Giant just had 5lb bags of apples for 3.99 last week. I stocked up and keep them in the fridge. Buy the large bags of red and green peppers instead of individual ones. You just have to look for deals.
A 5lb bag of apples where I live is about 7 dollars, on sale. There are no large bags of peppers (there are small bags of the small sweet ones though.).
But I suppose I'm just not looking hard enough for the deals. It's totally not a matter of location or anything!
I never said anything about your location, so there is no need for an attitude. I am in PA, there are many grocery stores and I dont spend a lot of money.
You implied that those who are spending a lot aren't looking for deals and should just buy the stuff on sale/in bulk, which totally ignores that in some places there are no deals/bulk buying isn't an option. It's fine to say "I do this." but it's rather short sighted to go "You just need to do this!" while ignoring all the factors that go into that kind of thing0 -
In middle TN, this wks Kroger sale sheet.
I spend about $250 a month for 3 people. we have 2 deer in the freezer
boneless skinless split chick breast 99cents/lb
choice boneless shouder roast 3.99/lb
tuna $1 can
Barilla pasta$1 box
red globe grapes $1.49/lb
russet potato 10lb/ $6
milk $2.99/gal
wheat bread 2/$3
cheddar cheese $1.99/8oz
fresh green beans and roma tomatoes 99cents/lb
organic pears $2 /lb
organic oranges $3.99/ 4 lbs
navel oranges $3.49/ 5 lbs
Silk almond or soy milk $2.99
frozen veg $1/ 12oz bag
Kashi cereal $2.99 box
dried beans and brown rice run $1.50-$2 /lb. but I like to buy in large quantity from Indian Mkt so it is more $1/lb
Around here people hunt and fish pretty much yr round. Turkey season right now, Yum. We have hunters for the hungry to provide venison for people struggling with meat prices.0 -
Where I live it is definitely more expensive to eat healthy. Fresh produce costs noticeably more than filler junk foods and are often not nearly as tasty - especially during the off seasons. There is a very high risk of produce not having any flavor at all or tasting like wood. Fish sticks are way cheaper than buying a piece of real fish. Greek yogurt is $1 when it goes on sale. Regular yogurt is 50 cents (10 for $5).
I'm not saying it is an excuse, or not worth it, or that there are not some very healthy inexpensive options available as well but that doesn't change the reality that, where I live, good food (especially produce and some dairy and meats) cost more than their nutritionally inferior equivalents.0 -
Wow... What a jerk.
Food does cost a lot! But if you shop around you'll find good deals. 5lb container of organic spinach at sams club is $5!! Anywhere else you pay that much for the 2oz bag. Apples can get pretty expensive too... I used to live in NC and the meat was much cheaper. Now I'm in Houston and chicken has become a "treat" pretty much. Cost of living in General is much higher hear so our food budget took a hit!0 -
For 10 years while our children were involved with 4H, we raised our own chickens. It cost us about $1 a pound to raise a typical 10 pound chicken. Our feed costs more than doubled over that time period. When you factor in butchering ($2 whole, $2.75 cut up), transportation and your time, I can see why buying local, organic meat costs what it does.
I sure miss those days. That was some amazingly good chicken! We still keep a huge garden and do a lot of canning and freezing. We used to do it just because we could and it was a project for the kids to take to the fair. Now we have a garden because of the savings and organic quality.0 -
I had a few minutes to think and I believe I am took this more on a tangent than what the originator intended. I was more talking about those people who complain tht to lose weight they need to spend more $$ and used expenses as an excuse as to why they cannot lose weight, which is totally false. I let threads from other message boards interfere with the subject at hand.
I dont know about Hawaii, never been.Hi,
I was wondering now and then why people complained about the costs of dieting..
Now a new fried wrote that he has to pay 3 dollars for an apple?!?!?
Well, I really hope it is not like this everywhere...
I live in Italy, and I lived in the UK, and the food is by no means as expensive as that...
So, my questions, out of curiosity... how much does "good" food cost where you live?
Fresh fruit and vegs, chicken and pork meat, legumes, potatoes, rice...
Do you really find that eating healthy is more expensive than not?
This is my biggest pet peeve when it comes to people who want to lose weight, go on a diet, etc when they wonder about the high price of 'healthy food.
I have yo yo'd over the years. I am not proud of it, but it has happened. I master losing weight buy eating better, eating less and exercising. It is just maintaining that has killed me. I am giving it one more go around.
When people complain and say they cannot lose weight because it is too expensive...that is complete BS.
YOu can easily lose weight, and gain more $$ in your bank account. It really goes hand in hand. People dont need to go out and buy fancy "healty" food to lose weight.
When I lose weight I make $$$$$.
I spend sooo much less on food. How? Because you eat less. MUCH, MUCH, MUCH less fast food, much less drinks. much less eating out, much, much less $$ spend when you eat less/healthier
I don't know about where you live but in Hawaii, where I live, I without a doubt spend less when I grab fast food. Food is expensive, far more expensive than on the mainland, but fast food prices remain fairly consistent with what they are on the mainland.
That aside, not everyone who gains weight eats fast food so for some what you experience just isn't the case.
My general point in this though when people complain that eating healthy and losing weight is just too expensive.
Most people can go to the grocery and get a week's worth of food, even healthier food, and spend much less on food than those people who eat out often. The obesity epedemic for some many people also drains their pocket books with the high prices of eating out/ordering in.
Case in point this past weekend. My wife just wanted to get breakfast for all of us at McDonalds or BK. $3-$4 a person it would cost. Instead I made some good breakfast, for a fraction of the cost, for the whole family.
Same thing for dinner. Chicket breasts on the grill, vegetables and a side salad...bought it all at the local market and it came to much less than what you could really get at even a fast food restaurant.
My main point is this.....people who say they cannot lose weight because it is too expensive to buy healthy food are just full of it.
And again, that's not true everywhere. Hawaii is one of the poorest states in the union, people are often cramming 4 generations of a family into a 3 bedroom house and just barely getting by. In that situation spending a few bucks a person at BK is going to be cheaper than anything else.
That said, you can lose weight eating BK or McDonalds, so if the point to fast food as the reason they can't lose weight that's nonsense. They could certainly lose weight eating solely fast food if they were so inclined (And depending on location is may be cheaper than going to the grocery store.)
Sure, you can lose weight by eating at Bk or McDonalds. That is 100% true.
But you know how you do it?
Eat less.
Eat less = spending less = losing weight isnt too expensive.
Losing weight isn't expensive, no. I believe I actually said as much. Changing ones food habits to so called 'healthy food' can certainly be expensive. Which is the argument being posed in this thread, is it not? Was that not while you told me that you could have chicken, veg, and a salad for less than you'd pay for fast food, because you're saying it's cheaper to eat healthy at home than to eat out?
Or was that just a fun anecdote for the sake of things?
I personall grow some food in my small garden that keeps some veggi costs down. The good thing about living in rural America, aka God's country, is that we are surrounded by agriculture. If I want apples? Go to the apple orchard and pay next to nothing. Corn on the cob? $1.50 a dozen at many farmers markets and such. Want many other fresh foods at a good cost? Go to the Amish stores.
So I do apologize for taking it off track, and that $$ should never be an excuse not to lose weight
That's quite alright. This is a topic that gets me riled up, because so many people ignore that just because where they are things are cheap that such things aren't true everywhere.
Right now I'm staying with my mom while my husband is deployed, so I'm in North Carolina. I'm able to buy the food for half of the meals for my mom, myself, and my four siblings on my food budget from Hawaii, and that's allowing for fresh fruit and vegetables I would never buy back home. If I lived here, in North Carolina, I would spend maybe 1/4 of what I spend in Hawaii (and have a wider selection/more fresh items.)0 -
I love living in Florida.... that is all I gotta say LOL0
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I feed my family of 5 (my husband, myself, and our kids, 7 year old boy, 4 year old boy, and 1 1/2 year old daughter) a mostly Paleo diet for around $400 a month. It's hard but food is around the same price as when we ate junk because I track local food costs and buy at the right stores. We also save money because we eat less fast food. I make as much from scratch as I can and we garden in the summer to get fresh veggies. It's just give and take at the store. Yeah, I can't buy Ramen for 30 cents a pack anymore (non-Paleo) but we're also not buying $8 frozen pizzas anymore either. Strawberries are expensive sometimes but broccoli is cheap. The kids actually cost more to feed than we do because they eat cheese and dairy and bread still. I live in Oregon btw
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Funny I just had a similar chat with a friend last night. I was saying that it is no wonder that people are increasingly overweight. I went to Walmart on Sunday and bought a honeydew mellon and a pineapple for 2.99 each. Last night I cut them up and put them into containers to munch on. I would say the whole process took me probably 15 minutes, including clean up. It crosses my mind that the McDonald's is less than five minutes form my house and I could buy a double cheese burger, small french fries, and a snack size mcflurry for 3 dollars. Half the price of the two fruits I cut up, and there would be no clean up needed! I am by no means advocating an unhealthy life style, however it is difficult to argue that a healthy life style is not more work and more expensive. That being said please, no one hand me head on a platter, I am on board with the work it takes to be healthy!!! I am shopping around for the cheaper foods, I am cutting up mellons and pineapple to have easy access to healthy snacks, I choose to buy them whole and cut up so that it's a bit cheaper. Just saying it's annoying, one would think there would be something out there to help those that have limited funds and time to make it easier to live a healthy life style. It is work, well worth it, but work non the less!!!! 0
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We are all worth the investment, and to be frank it isn't much money. I live in Houston,TX and shopping at Trader Joe's my organic apples are 89 cents each, my strawberries (which get me through about 3-4 servings for a 16 oz. container) is $4.20 I believe, but you can find it about 21 cents cheaper when on sale at Kroger's. My Tofu nuggets have 3 servings and is $2.99 a bag, so 3 meals for 3 bucks! If you can't already tell I'm obsessed with Trader Joe's and they've been a Godsend for me, but even in regular grocery stores prices may be a little higher (sometimes lower) but it is certainly worth it to be healthier. As another poster joked earlier you'll pay for all of those dollar menu fast food products with your health, and the cost of your prescriptions and care, it's not worth it. On average my grocery expenses are about $40-60 a week.0
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I'm in Costa Rica. As a rule, fresh produce is inexpensive here, provided you don't buy imported goods. Apples, for example, are easily $5/pound but I can get three small pineapples for $1 at the farmers market. Our property has guava, plantains, bananas, papaya, oranges, etc. growing randomly (almost like weeds, albeit yummy weeds), so we try to utilize those. We also grow our own herbs and lettuce.
Meat and dairy are expensive, especially when you factor in local salaries. Chicken is about $4-$4.50/pound, beef comes in a little less. $1.50 for a liter or milk. Cheese probably costs more by weight than gold. (I pay about $10 per pound for cheddar. :shudder: )
We don't buy many convenience foods – you don't want to pay $9 for a thing of Double Stuf Oreos (no judgement here; sometimes I totally want to!) – and I cook from scratch almost everyday. We pay about $400 a month for groceries.
ETA: There are no, and I do mean absolutely none, coupons in Costa Rica. Sales are almost nil. Loss leaders at the grocery store? Ha ha ha.0 -
Well guys, this discussion is very interesting, thanks for answering... by the way, do you know a way to go directly to the first comment you didn't read yet?
Every time I go out and come back I have to go through all pages to find the right spot.
I just comment when I'm done so I can scroll quickly for my easily noticeable ticker.0 -
How many "meals" would consider the pineapple and mellon to consist of? I could def see it be enough for a breakfast, and a lunch, and maybe a breakfast that next day. Maybe even more. YOu paid $6.00 for it and can literally get 3 meals out of it so you are at $2 a meal if you are doing it that way.Funny I just had a similar chat with a friend last night. I was saying that it is no wonder that people are increasingly overweight. I went to Walmart on Sunday and bought a honeydew mellon and a pineapple for 2.99 each. Last night I cut them up and put them into containers to munch on. I would say the whole process took me probably 15 minutes, including clean up. It crosses my mind that the McDonald's is less than five minutes form my house and I could buy a double cheese burger, small french fries, and a snack size mcflurry for 3 dollars. Half the price of the two fruits I cut up, and there would be no clean up needed! I am by no means advocating an unhealthy life style, however it is difficult to argue that a healthy life style is not more work and more expensive. That being said please, no one hand me head on a platter, I am on board with the work it takes to be healthy!!! I am shopping around for the cheaper foods, I am cutting up mellons and pineapple to have easy access to healthy snacks, I choose to buy them whole and cut up so that it's a bit cheaper. Just saying it's annoying, one would think there would be something out there to help those that have limited funds and time to make it easier to live a healthy life style. It is work, well worth it, but work non the less!!!!
and I dont know about you, but at the local mcdonals around here that meal is 4 bucks and more if you wanted a flurry.
But your point is well taken, and people can lose weight if they wanted to get that meal (and if you get water to drink) it is around 670 calories if you watch the rest of your day
I know when I go to the market and piece out the prices of the food for the meals it typically comes out cheaper than most meals eating out.0 -
Not everyone is in the same situation. I remember a time in my life when my ex-bf, myself and my daughter ate on $800-$900 per month. We were living the life! And pooping away tons of money!
Do the math on what being a single mom making $11.50 means. If I pulled that **** now I wouldn't be able to afford the roof over my head.
Healthy eating and solid efforts are brag worthy.
If you got it, spend it on poop if you want too.
I consider my diet to be wonderful, although there's a ton more I could spend (steak, shrimp, farmer's eggs, for starters, but I could really, really go on) but I choose not too.
No one is better or worse for spending a lot or spending a little on groceries, we're all awesome by using the resources we have to improve ourselves.
Except for the ones making the excuses "healthy eating is too expensive".
That's copping out of personal responsibility.0 -
We are a family of four, we buy almost zero processed/prepared foods. My husband very often makes pasta or bread, so we've even cut back on purchases of those. Our two children eat very, very little meat of any kind. We spend about $700/month.
We live in Missouri.0 -
For the sake of curiosity I whipped out my spreadsheet...
Including groceries, dining and out "drinks at gas stations" (all food costs basically):
I spent:
Jan 2014 $387.61
Feb 2014 $312.40
March 2014 $324.90
The goal is $250 and it has been done, but it's hard, and I like treats.
I actually almost met the goal in Feb, then turned around and bought a car, then took my family to a restaurant to celebrate, but then I had to factor that in, so I was no longer at goal after splurging to celebrate almost meeting the goal.
Silly finances.
I've decided since I work somewhere I don't get raises at all, I would compensate by reducing my cost of living.0 -
heres the thing...do not assume your experience is the same as everyone elses
food costs vary all over the world some people are lucky enough to have access to"healthy" foods for a good price a lot of people are not that lucky so yes it can be very very expensive
Salem nailed it.0 -
Check out this co-op that's down in Houston. They get top notch produceWe are all worth the investment, and to be frank it isn't much money. I live in Houston,TX and shopping at Trader Joe's my organic apples are 89 cents each, my strawberries (which get me through about 3-4 servings for a 16 oz. container) is $4.20 I believe, but you can find it about 21 cents cheaper when on sale at Kroger's.
https://www.rawfullyorganic.com/content.php?section=order_form&selector=order0
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