Why is it cheaper to eat unhealthfully...

yo_andi

Here's an example:

My lunch today:

1 cup arugula - works out to about $0.34
1 cup succotash made with black beans, corn, lima beans, mushrooms, squash - works out to about $1.37
2 whole beets - $1.29 (more expensive because I bought organic)
Tuna cake - works out to about $1.75 because it contains quinoa which can be a bit expensive (unless you get it from Trader Joe's...cheapest I've seen by a lot!)
1 small avocado - on sale for $0.99 each this week
32 oz of ice cold water - from the water cooler in the office kitchen

= $5.74

That's $0.05 less expensive than *just* a Whopper (no meal) at BK in NYC as mentioned earlier. I don't think I need to do the nutritional comparison for you...

k8blujay2

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:

Try a farmer's market. You'll have to shop on pre-scheduled days, but you'll actually pay reasonable prices for good, wholesome food.

That's actually on the high end... While still more expensive, I don't pay more than $1... but at Target I can buy them for $0.75 each or less... at least I can where I am... but then we have an over abundance of grocer's in my metro area.

NoAdditives

It isn't. A fast food meal for four people usually costs $20-30. I can make that same meal at home for about half that, maybe less.

My husband just left on a five day camping trip. I got him a whole bunch of processed foods (as healthy as I could make them) and it cost me $120, my budget for one week's worth of groceries for my family of five. Five days worth of processed food for one person cost as much as a week's worth of produce, meat, cheese, bread, milk, juice, etc. for five people. To me, that is insane. and, it shows just how affordable fresh, real food is.

vim_n_vigor

My lunch:

Grilled chicken breast
romaine lettuce
1/2 tomato
1/2 squash
1/4 onion
dressing
Chobani

Total cost - 3.25 (you could add in a few pennies for gas on the grill if you'd like)
I am very full. To be as satisfied at McDonalds, I'd need more than the .99 cheeseburger. Most of their meals are now $5 or more, but even if we go off the dollar menu - 2 McDouble - 1.98, fries, 1.09 (small), assume water for 0. That gives me basically the same price, but I feel good, the food tasted great, and I'll be full longer. I could have saved .60 by eating regular yogurt instead of chobani. I disagree with the statement that it is cheaper to eat crap.

yoovie

It is cheaper to healthy..when you figure in medical costs that you will be paying for one of those weight loss surgeries..

even if you dont figure it in!! I wish people didnt try to void one excuse with another.

once you fill your cabinets with cooking staples, the sky is the limit and you only need to go out and pick five or six bucks worth of stuff.

youre just gonna have to learn how to cook if you want to eat healthy.

I dont understand why more people dont like to do it.

Im friggin excited everytime I get to cook- and ten times more so if I get other people to eat it!

rml_16

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:

Try a farmer's market. You'll have to shop on pre-scheduled days, but you'll actually pay reasonable prices for good, wholesome food.

That's actually on the high end... While still more expensive, I don't pay more than $1... but at Target I can buy them for $0.75 each or less... at least I can where I am... but then we have an over abundance of grocer's in my metro area.

It also depends on the season. Pepper can be anywhere from 50 cents to $1.50 in the grocery store here, depending on if they're in season. The farmer's market is much cheaper, though. I can get a HUGE zucchini at the farmer's market for 25 cents.

b1g_tun4

They make it as cheap and easy as possible to eat badly. The only half descent fast food is Subway and that takes 10 minutes at least to get out of there. I often wonder the same. I saw in the news where some low income areas have banned the addition of more fast food places because that is all people eat and it has become a health problem.

To eat healthy, I have to go shopping. Sometimes at multiple stores..bring it home store it properly...prepare it properly. It takes time. OR I can run to McDs and be outta there in about 2 minutes with 2 dbl cheese and large fries.

myfitnessnmhoy

Haven't really read the thread much... but going to point out that many of these fast food places have value menus.

So when you compare eating healthy to the most expensive thing at McDonalds, it doesn't work out that well.

For $1 each you could have a McDouble, McChicken, small fries, etc from McDonalds.

So if you are going to make comparisons, don't pick and choose.

Fine. We'll pick and choose your choice then.

McDouble: Two 1.6-ounce patties, so 3.2 ounces or 1/5 of a pound of meat (pre-cooked weight) per burger. One slice of American cheese. One bun.

I'll compare that to a similar-quality meat (though mine won't have fillers). One pound of 80% lean beef is $3.89 currently here. So 1/5 pound is 77 cents.

An 8-pack of hamburger rolls is $1.50. 18 cents a burger roll.

Cheese is $6 a pound and American cheese has 48 slices of cheese per pound, so that's 13 cents for the cheese.


So I can make the same burger with better meat for 8 cents more than McDonald's, and that's based on them planning on losing money for each burger because they hope you buy the fries and soda.

k8blujay2

THIS IS WHAT I WANNA KNO! If you look at the store, the healthy stuff seems to always b more expensive than the junk lol

I don't know about that... around here a bag of chips is around $3-4 (depending on when it is on sale)... but a bag of grapes is about the same price.... and the grapes go farther as far as number of snacks. A pound of bananas are around $0.50... where as a single candy bar is $0.79 (or more).

Again, I primarily shop at Target or Safeway... so I am quoting prices in my area for these stores. You may find them somewhere else for more or less.

Dawnhasajeep

It’s because of the US agricultural policies and the way the US Gov is subsidizing the food we eat.
Check out this You Tube Video of Michael Pollan called Twinkie vs. Carrot

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JH-Qv3f73x4

jennifer52484

About $6-$10 at mcdonalds will get you one fast food meal.

$20 at Grocery store will get you 4+ meals ( ie. chicken breast, Veggies, brown rice) ~$5/meal

It can be cheaper to buy healthier foods at the market over fast foods. Home cooked healthy meals take prep work and some people don't have the time. That is why a lot of people prep their food for the week. No reason not to eat healthy when it is already made ahead for you.

“Anyone can find an excuse. It takes a special person to find the time”
― Linda Poindexter

JaceyMarieS

I truly do not think it's cheaper to purchase and consume unhealthy food. My grocery bill went down $100/month when I stopped buying junk.

It is much more time-consuming to prepare healthy food, so I guess if you want to make the argument that time is money ......

k8blujay2

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:

Try a farmer's market. You'll have to shop on pre-scheduled days, but you'll actually pay reasonable prices for good, wholesome food.

That's actually on the high end... While still more expensive, I don't pay more than $1... but at Target I can buy them for $0.75 each or less... at least I can where I am... but then we have an over abundance of grocer's in my metro area.

It also depends on the season. Pepper can be anywhere from 50 cents to $1.50 in the grocery store here, depending on if they're in season. The farmer's market is much cheaper, though. I can get a HUGE zucchini at the farmer's market for 25 cents.

Oh I agree. That's why I always use the qualifier of where I am... even out of season I don't generally have to pay more than a $1 for a green pepper (red peppers on the other hand)... and you have heard of a food desert, right? Well, I like to think of my area as a food rain forest. :laugh: But produce does vary greatly even here as well.

ETA: I wish our farmers markets were that cheap... they are hellaciously expensive here... While you might be able to buy a carrot the size of your head, it costs WAY more than even 2 pounds of Green Giant fresh carrots would be...

MemphisKitten

There's a reason obesity is considered an epidemic. And it's not that much more expensive to eat healthy, you just have to know how.

Michelleypoo82

I don't know if anyone said this already, but the US government subsidizes corn, soy, and I believe wheat farmers. That means cheaper corn, soy, and wheat by-products, including white flour, corn syrup, and processed foods that use soy.

emilytgs24

You could try supplimenting some of your fresh veggies and fruits with canned or frozen...they don't taste as good but you still get the nutrition and they are normally cheaper! You could also freeze or can your own when there is a fire sale on them...then you would have cheap preserved produce and know exactly how they were handled.

On that note - try growing a garden - and then canning or freezing. You'd be surprised how far one tomato plant, a few peppers, and one zucchini plant will go!

ZugTheMegasaurus

I find that these threads, while making good points, tend to oversimplify this issue. For a lot of people, yes, it can be the same or even cheaper to buy fresh food and make it at home. But if you're living at or under the poverty line (or even a little above depending on the region), that stops being true at a point.

Someone pointed out the difference ounce-for-ounce between a McDonalds burger and one at home. The thing is, you cannot go to the grocery store and pull one bun out of the bag, one slice of cheese out of the pack, and one serving of beef from the fridge. The total amount you're spending will be greater even if it works out to less money per serving. For some people, that is simply not workable. If you've got one dollar to live on for the day, you'd be crazy to get the 70-calorie apple over the 450-calorie double cheeseburger.

On top of that, subsidies make certain foods vastly less expensive than others. It is a fact that corn and its derivatives are much cheaper than, say, fresh vegetables. It's not healthier, but foods full of it will stretch your dollar further.

For people who eat out twice a day and spend $8 every time, buying groceries and cooking at home will very likely be cheaper. But if we're talking "unhealthy" as not just fast food but things like that $.10 pack of ramen or the $.33 box of macaroni and cheese that'll feed four people, there's no denying that fresh is indeed more expensive.

VanessaHeartsMasr

I truly do not think it's cheaper to purchase and consume unhealthy food. My grocery bill went down $100/month when I stopped buying junk.

It is much more time-consuming to prepare healthy food, so I guess if you want to make the argument that time is money ......

Hallelujah! Can I get an Amen up in here? I've been saving a good 100.00 a week with my family eating at home and I've lost 6 pounds. So what if I have to wash a few more dishes or stand in the kitchen a little bit. Hey, idea! Work it into your exercise log. Score!

A head of lettuce costs 1.50, tomato 2.50 a pound, cucumber 1.00 apiece, chicken breast 6.00 a pound, potatoes 3.50 for a 5 pound bag. There ya go, dinner for 4=15.00.

k8blujay2

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 that

This last qoute is about what it is in North Central Texas... though I know lean ground beef (90/10 and leaner) is around $4 a pound (conventional)... the only thing I spend more on in this list is Milk, I spend $2.99 for a gallon, but I get milk that where the dairy farmers don't use hormones or antibiotics for their cows... but even then regular milk is around $2.50 anyway. Only after Aldi's started popping up did we see a price drop to 99 cents, but that's done now.

ItsCasey

The reason a burger and fries at McDonald's is cheaper than making one yourself is because McDonald's buys a billion times more ground beef, cheese, buns, etc., than you do, so they get everything much cheaper by volume. They don't pay much for it , so they don't have to charge you much for it. If you go to the store and only buy a couple pounds of ground beef, one bag of hamburger buns, and a package of cheese slices, of course it's going to cost you more per burger. But let's not delude ourselves into thinking a homecooked burger using the same QUALITY of products that McDonald's uses is appreciably healthier.

You want healthy and cheap? Plant a garden.