Anyone here eat all organic?

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Replies

  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I would love some tips on how you do it!!! I have to feed a family of 3, me, my hubby and daughter, the baby already eats organic. I know a lot about cooking and I have my own herb garden, so mostly just wondering if it can be done on a budget of $450 or so a month?

    Wow, no way could it be done where I live! Well, maybe if you are vegetarian. Only a few organic meats are available where I live and they are all crazy expensive ($8 lb for chicken, almost $20 lb for beef, I've never seen any others). Organic vegetables are very expensive when out of season and higher than others when in season. But if you were able to grow and freeze/can your own organic veggies and fruit and didn't eat meat you might be able to do it on that budget. Organic whole grains are affordable in my area.

    Does wild caught fish count as organic? I know it's not certified but it still seems the same concept.
  • Fairysoul
    Fairysoul Posts: 1,361 Member
    I thank you all for your responses, but what do you do when your local farmers market is only in the summer? I live in a small mountain town and it's hard to get seasonal foods...
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I love eating organic and local foods, so here's my take on organics.

    1) It's not necessary to eat entirely organic. People are right, it increases the price of most foods. And the official USDA labels on the produce is just a marketing gimmick. EAT LOCAL, BUY LOCAL!!! Hit up your farmers markets -- they have the best foods around!

    I agree that local farmer's markets are great for fresh produce, but there is hardly ever any certified organic foods at mine. It's costly to get and maintain that certification and most small farms just can't/don't do it. I ask if they use pesticides and most say yes, but even if they say no, I just have to take them at their word since big brother is not checking them out.

    That's why I grown as much of my own as possible, but I don't have a big piece of land (yet).
  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member
    I haven't read all of the responses and I can't say that I eat ALL organic, but here's what I do:

    1) I shop the farmer's markets for veggies and eggs. I opt for the certified organic stands for foods that are known to be high in pesticides (the "dirty dozen") and I don't worry so much about the rest. Besides, a lot of the time farmers at those markets practice organic farming but have just not gone through the process and expense of being certified. I am lucky in that I live in the Bay Area of CA so there are year-round, abundant farmer's markets.

    2) I don't insist on having foods that aren't in season or local. For example, pineapple doesn't grow in California, as far as I know, so I don't buy pineapples (besides, those aren't really at the farmer's market anyway). (Or maybe it does in Southern California? I don't know. I haven't seen it in Northern CA.)

    3) I order grass-fed/pastured meat in bulk from a local source. I would like to be able to go in on half a cow or something, but I don't have a chest freezer, so right now about 30 lbs at a time will have to do. Yes, it IS expensive (~$6-7/lb for a mix that includes lower and higher-end cuts -- but not really filet mignon :happy: ) but, quite frankly, seeing meat on sale for $1/lb at Safeway kinda creeps me out. Call me a snob, but I don't think meat should be that cheap and I'd rather just eat less.

    That's about it. It helps I suppose that I don't really eat grains so I don't have to buy those. I have some coconut oil and wild-caught canned tuna and tea that I tend to order in bulk from Amazon. I mostly use fat that I've rendered from suet (or bacon grease) oh, and I also buy grass-fed butter from the store.
  • tjnahm
    tjnahm Posts: 73 Member
    Two words for you.... farmers market! Try to buy as much of your food as possible from the local seasonal farmer's market. The food might not be labeled "organic" as the label itself is as much a marketing ploy as anything else. However if you talk to the people there, you can find good sources of fresh whole, chemical-free (organic) foods.

    This works well for both produce and finding meat, chicken, eggs, etc..

    Best of luck!

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