Why is it cheaper to eat unhealthfully...
Options
Replies
-
It's actually much much much cheaper to eat wholesome healthy foods. It will just take you a While to figure it out. It seems like a learning curve everyone has to go through.
I agree with this
Chicken breast, oats, rice, beans, lentils all cheap
agreed. I make a shopping list and hubby and i bought food for FOUR people for under 50 bucks for a week! Ive cut my grocery bill in HALF be eating better!0 -
When I visited America I found that grocery stores overcharge by a lot. $1.50 for a single green pepper? Yeah, ok, I got a 4-pack for $1.29 at home (Canada) yesterday! :grumble:
WOW! Where the in Canada did you get that? OMG, a 4 pack of peppers is 6.99 here in Ontario (not even organic), & if you buy them individually it's approx., 2.50 per pepper.0 -
I've actually found that the way I used to eat vs. how I eat now come out to about the same amount. The only difference really is that now I buy a lot of stuff at once and it lasts for a week or so. Before, I would buy just what I happened to be eating at the time, so each shopping trip or fast food trip didn't cost much, but they added up over time.0
-
I would take the KFC....
Ok, the Chicken Breasts and ground beef part is totally wrong, they end up being around 5 dollars for me but still lol.0 -
I've heard things like sweet potatoes are ridiculously overpriced in the US, which seems exceptionally unfair, and I've never understood how that works with fresh produce. I think it's a government/FDA thing, but I've been disgusted with the attitude towards food in the USA since I learned what the milk is allowed/forced to be like.
We don't really have that problem in the UK, the bulk of what we pay for when buying fresh produce is actually the packaging (or preprepared fruits and vegetables), and the range is quite vast in the supermarkets. So-called 'ready meals' are still cheaper, somewhat, but if you're buying a whole week's worth the price really skyrockets when it comes to getting your daily intake and keeping full.
For example, I cook for myself and one other, every single day... if I were to buy the ingredients for chilli con carne it would set me back around £15 for enough to feed 4/5 people... 8/9 with rice and vegetables. So that's beef (or turkey -- turkey is more expensive here), beans, peppers, mushrooms and a ridiculous amount of onions.
If I were to buy a day's worth of differing 'ready meals,' just for me, it would set me back about that much, and then that much again for feeding the other person in my home.
The solution, really, is to grow your own and I think more people should try it.
Seeds, cuttings and slips are cheap, and growing pots and compost are a good investment, space/climate is never usually an issue... and once you get started it's not all that time consuming at all.0 -
Big agriculture companies and chemical/pesticide companies get huge government subsidies to keep their products cheap, plentiful and profitable.
Corn, soy and dairy, for example, are HEAVILY subsidized. That's why you get asked if you want cheese on your burger, that's why there's high-fructose corn syrup in everything, and that's why people aren't aware of the ACTUAL cost of their food and are surprised and daunted by the costs of organics.
Fast food ingredients (including all processed sugars, wheat, corn, and factory-farmed meats) are kept artificially cheap for the consumer because our taxes support government subsidies that keep them that way.
^^^^^^ Yes, exactly THIS!0 -
When I visited America I found that grocery stores overcharge by a lot. $1.50 for a single green pepper? Yeah, ok, I got a 4-pack for $1.29 at home (Canada) yesterday! :grumble:
WOW! Where the in Canada did you get that? OMG, a 4 pack of peppers is 6.99 here in Ontario (not even organic), & if you buy them individually it's approx., 2.50 per pepper.
WHAT? Where on earth in Ontario do you live???
I've never heard of those prices ($6.99) and I live in Ontario (Brampton).
I actually JUST checked my flyers and a 4pack of peppers at Loblaws Superstore would be $2.98.
...
Also for some of the other things...
6 pieces of corns = $1.98 (or 40 cents each).
Basket of peaches = $3.480 -
Have you priced cancer, lately?0
-
These threads always make me glad I don't live in the States! Here there is 'economy' veg and most other things, which are the over and undersized produce that can't be sold as 'A class' or even 'B class' so are usually a great deal and sold in bulk. Also, if you shop at the end of the day they sell stuff off super cheap. The best store for this in the UK is Waitrose, where you can get posh, wholemeal bread for just 10p if you time it right! Morrison's is good for that too, but I find Tesco and Sainsbury's don't go far enough.
On the other hand, eating out here is pricey, even McDonalds! Farmers' markets are really expensive too, but that's because the supermarkets force farmers to sell at below cost...
Another point is, eat to your environment. In Japan bean sprouts were cheap and potatoes were expensive, but it's the opposite in the uk.0 -
Oh, and another reason I'm cheap is I don't eat meat
0 -
Ok, the Chicken Breasts and ground beef part is totally wrong, they end up being around 5 dollars for me but still lol.
Holy crap! Where do you live?!
Same list where I live in FL:
2 lbs chicken breast $10-$12 Winn-Dixie
*3 lbs potatoes $3.47 Walmart
8 ears of corn $4 Walmart
1 individual peach $0.88 Walmart
1 Gallon Milk $3.48 Walmart
1 lb ground beef (97%) $4.07 Winn-Dixie
32 oz tub fat free yoplait $2.48 Walmart
18 oz oats $1.18 Walmart
2 lbs frozen peas $4.56 Walmart
1 lb dry kidney beans $1.28 Walmart
total $34.40-$36.40
Even if the stuff cost $40, think about the KFC would pretty much last only one meal, the groceries you could cook at least 3 or 4 meals.0 -
Yeah, you have to look at the longevity. For $100 a week at the grocery store, I can eat almost for two weeks. I know that sounds weird. But , I do have overlap and bad weeks, and I can stretch my food out. If I go out to eat with that same $100, I won't make it one week. Maybe just a few days with breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday. It's close to $20 a pop. Now, I'm comparing decent food, not McD's. That's not really even food. Ya know? The quality of the food is so different that you almost can't compare it.0
-
Holy crap! Where do you live?!
Same list where I live in FL:
2 lbs chicken breast $10-$12 Winn-Dixie
*3 lbs potatoes $3.47 Walmart
8 ears of corn $4 Walmart
1 individual peach $0.88 Walmart
1 Gallon Milk $3.48 Walmart
1 lb ground beef (97%) $4.07 Winn-Dixie
32 oz tub fat free yoplait $2.48 Walmart
18 oz oats $1.18 Walmart
2 lbs frozen peas $4.56 Walmart
1 lb dry kidney beans $1.28 Walmart
total $34.40-$36.4
Here is Iowa
Chicken breast is $1.99 per pound so I get 2 pounds for about $4 (can find it cheaper on sale in frozen bags)
3 lbs of russet potatoes is $2.97
8 ears of corn is $3.50
Peaches were 88 cents a pound most of the summer
I buy half gallon of milk for $1.72, BUT i stocked up when HyVee had it for 88cents
Giant canister oats is $2.48
2 lbs frozen peas are $1.98
1 lb beans is $1.28
Beef I have no idea. That stuff isn't worth the price on my tight budget xD
A little pricey, BUT we had a terrible drought this year. Expect a lot of prices to go up everywhere around the states.
Best thing to do is to get all the local ads in the area and ad match with walmart. I save a ridiculous amount of money while shopping by doing that0 -
Big agriculture companies and chemical/pesticide companies get huge government subsidies to keep their products cheap, plentiful and profitable.
Corn, soy and dairy, for example, are HEAVILY subsidized. That's why you get asked if you want cheese on your burger, that's why there's high-fructose corn syrup in everything, and that's why people aren't aware of the ACTUAL cost of their food and are surprised and daunted by the costs of organics.
Fast food ingredients (including all processed sugars, wheat, corn, and factory-farmed meats) are kept artificially cheap for the consumer because our taxes support government subsidies that keep them that way.
This (at least in the US). We're not subsidizing the broccoli and apple farmers, we're subsidizing corn and soy (and the soy is generally for animal feed).0 -
Read The American Way of Eating: Undercover at Walmart, Applebee's, Farm Fields and the Dinner Table by Tracie McMillan. It covers all the bases. It's one of the many books I am reading at the moment.
Link to purchase here: http://www.amazon.com/The-American-Way-Eating-Undercover/dp/14391719550 -
It does take some time to plan and prepare but it is definitely possible to eat healthy at around the same cost, if not cheaper. For instance, buy the bulk packages of meats and/or frozen veggies, get them home, divide them up into meal sized portions, stick 'em in the freezer and you're good for a couple of weeks. Don't let anything go to waste! You can make a casserole or two, portion out the servings, freeze them in small containers and bring them for lunch for a week or more.
I used to spend at least $12 per day on food that I'd buy for snacks and lunch at the drive thru and/or the cafe at work. Now my packed lunch and snacks cost me about $6 per day. That includes a protein bar, at least 2 kinds of fruit, a sandwich and greek yogurt.0 -
It can be cheap to eat healthfully - Make sure you shop IN SEASON. Most people don't realize that every vegetable doesn't grow in every season. I've noticed fruits and veggies nearly double in price when they are out of season.0
-
Big agriculture companies and chemical/pesticide companies get huge government subsidies to keep their products cheap, plentiful and profitable.
Corn, soy and dairy, for example, are HEAVILY subsidized. That's why you get asked if you want cheese on your burger, that's why there's high-fructose corn syrup in everything, and that's why people aren't aware of the ACTUAL cost of their food and are surprised and daunted by the costs of organics.
Fast food ingredients (including all processed sugars, wheat, corn, and factory-farmed meats) are kept artificially cheap for the consumer because our taxes support government subsidies that keep them that way.
Ding! Follow the money. Corn (and therefore, high fructose corn syrup) is massively subsidized, which is why it winds up in virtually everything on the shelves. We even put corn (ethanol) in our cars! I also agree with those who pointed out that when one considers healthcare costs as a result of heart disease, diabetes, etc., it's ultimately much cheaper to eat healthily.
I concur.
Corn is used in the US to make ethanol because corn is already grown in insane amounts. Corn is actually one of the worst stocks for biofuels (to compare, sunflower yeilds roughly 7-8 times the amount corn does, even soy would be a better choice - http://www.bioenergy.wa.gov/OilSeed.aspx ). We could replace half of our corn fields with even sunflower and produce far more biofuel (ethanol and biodiesel) from the crops.
That said, to give you an idea of just how much corn the US produces, check out the search results for "corn burner" - https://www.google.com/search?q=corn+burner . The fact that there is such a market, let alone such a large one, should tell you just how much corn is grown around here. It's insane.0 -
If we were to shop at ASDA or Tesco for those foods it would cost:
2lb chicken breast - £6
(Can't find russet potatoes in ASDA) 3lb White Potato - 94p I think
875g Corn on the cob - £1
4 Peaches - £2 or 2 packs for £3
Gallon of Skimmed Milk - £3.56
1kg of Oats - 75p
500g of Mince Beef - £1.56
170g of Total 0% fat Greek Yogurt - £1
1kg of Frozen Peas - £1
The problem is, I don't live on my own. I still live with my parents along with 2 siblings. So you would have to times a few of those items along with other crap that they want by 5.
I also have eggs, which aren't too bad, but sadly we don't get free range... I think it costs like £2.50 for 15 free range eggs which I go through in 5 days on my own, so we have to get like 3 packs for all 5 of us which lasts like 2 weeks usually. So instead of paying £7.50 for eggs, it's only like £4.80 or something stupid.0 -
when people talk about how cheaply they shop in supermarkets, they should also take into account the very low quality food they are purchasing -
Factory-farmed animals, raised in deplorable conditions, jacked up on steroids and antibiotics;
Genetically modified vegetables, doused in pesticides;
Fruit, also heavily sprayed and grown with toxic chemicals, that is shipped around the world using vast amounts of gas and oil;
Milk from cows so sick (from a corn-based diet that spawns E. Coli) that the cows die from illness constantly;
Fish raised in farms that are swimming in pollutants and chemicals designed to keep them alive just long enough to get to your table;
etc.
The result is foods that LOOK like food, but are depleted of much of their nutrition, carry dangerous pathogens from the illnesses that close contact, stress, untreated injuries, forced growth (why chicken thighs are so big), and horrific conditions in general cause, and, in the case of produce, are sprayed and treated with cancer-causing chemicals.
Cheap food isn't cheap!0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 391.4K Introduce Yourself
- 43.5K Getting Started
- 259.7K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.6K Food and Nutrition
- 47.3K Recipes
- 232.3K Fitness and Exercise
- 390 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.4K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.7K Motivation and Support
- 7.8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.2K MyFitnessPal Information
- 22 News and Announcements
- 922 Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.3K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions