Why is eating healthy so darn expensive?

Have you tried ethnic shops? I used to live right between a Turkish supermarket and a Greek greengrocer - lovely fresh food, mostly unprocessed, for little money.

Also, cutting out meat made my food bill way, way lower <snip>

I second the ethnic grocery idea. Last week I got almost more bok choy than I could use for $2 (I would have sautéed it and frozen it if it had been in danger of going bad). And, while DH and I have not cut out meat, we eat a lot less. Today I stuffed a pork chop that weighed nearly 1 lb. before stuffing- yes, ONE pork chop. DH and I shared it and still had some left over. They came two to a pack and the other is in the freezer. I have no idea how anyone could eat one of those things. Portion control is a good cost-cutter.

I know that most coupons are for processed foods and we still buy some. I like canned soup for the convenience and a can of chicken noodle soup with a ton of sautéed veggies is 100 calories plus the veggies. (I use a nonstick spray to sautee.)

Finally, check out Whole Foods for items sold in bulk- couscous, bran, bulghur, dried beans, etc. I once bought a cabbage without looking at the price and nearly had a heart attack, but the bulk foods in the bins are competitively priced and you can buy as little as you need.

Edited to add: it's expensive to make food without additives because it has to taste good all by itself and it doesn't stay stable on the shelf as long. Saturday I compared the "plain" yogurt DH bought earlier (ingredients included sugar, cornstarch and another thickener I can't remember) to my favorite brand of Greek yogurt (which is only nonfat milk plus yogurt cultures). The Greek yogurt was twice as much per ounce even though it came in a bigger container (and you'd think the per-ounce cost would be less because of that).

Check the circulars to see what's the best price where.

I can usually find boneless skinless chicken breast for $1.99 a pound at one of the three stores I regularly shop. Sometimes fish (salmon, tilapia) and pork has BOGO sales. Buy meats in the "big packs" and freeze what you won't use immediately.

Buy fresh fruits and vegetables in season, and check frozen if it's not. I can get seedless grapes now for $1.49 a pound. A few months back, they were $3.99 a pound, so I didn't buy them. I recently bought 8 pounds of navel oranges for $3.99... that's about the cost of a big bag of potato chips. In a few weeks, strawberries will be a better price than they are now. In the summer, check local farmers markets for fresh produce.

Chicken where I buy it is $7 a lb

I got antibiotic-free chicken breast (admittedly with bone and skin, but that's easily enough taken care of) at Whole Foods in Manhattan for $2.99/lb last week. A few weeks ago I got antibiotic-free whole chicken from Fresh Direct for $1.99/lb. I promise you can do better than $7/lb.

I have just started planning meals ahead and making EVERYTHING from scratch. You pay for convenience. Boneless, skinless chicken breast is convenient but expensive. Bone-in, skin-on breast is cheaper. Shrimp with the tail and vein still attached are cheaper. Dry beans are way, way cheaper than canned. In many cases frozen fruit is cheaper than fresh due to seasonality, quality, and what's available in your area. Walmart is by far the cheapest place you can shop. I recently purchased the following for about $180 at Walmart (this is a copy-paste from my thread on prepping food):

Medium/small tupperware (I have big ones, need some for meals/sauces)
Two sizes of Ziploc freezer bags
Saran-wrap
Sharpie marker
Cooking spray

roasted red pepper (for wraps)
rotisserie chicken (to shred & freeze)
big bag of almonds (for snacking and to make almond flour)
oats (to make oat flour)
canned pumpkin (for baking)
vanilla extract (for baking)
one each of mexican, italian, and indian spice blends
canned chick peas (for hummus & salads)
fresh garlic
frozen berries (for smoothies)
ezekial bread (to freeze)
flat-out wraps (for...yea)
lettuce
avocado & guac mix
turkey pepperoni (don't judge, I love mini pizzas)
mozzarella
pasta sauce
frozen shrimp
ground beef
unsweetened applesauce (for baking)
buckwheat (this usually replaces rice)
dates (for baking)
dark choco chips (for OMNOMNOM--er, baking)
some sort of veggie spread mix I can put into...
plain greek yogurt
light coconut milk
sweet potato
egg white (I do eat whole eggs)
veggie boullion (for eventual crock pot & buckwheat)

I have a deep freezer and will stock up on meats whenever possible. For example: when chicken breast goes on sale for $1.99lb I will by 20 pounds then portion it out into 1lb packages and use my food sealer to vacuum pack it. Now that Easter has passed I am waiting for them to mark down the boneless lamb legs so I can buy a few of those to freeze. Buy a couple of turkeys after major holidays as those will be marked down too. If you are going prepare a meal with shrimp, buy it frozen raw then thaw and peel it yourself. You will save a few dollars per pound and it tastes better too! I will not buy fish if it has been frozen. The texture is just to funky for me. We have it at least once a week so I buy what is on sale. This week wild caught fresh cod is on my list to buy.

Produce....I try to stick to what is on sale for fresh, but there are just things that we buy on a weekly basis no matter the price. We eat some frozen veggies, but not a whole lot. Again, it's a texture thing for me. In the summer my DH grows a garden and we eat from that and can some things.

We are trying to eat less refined foods so I am starting to make more things from scratch. I make Belgian waffles and freeze them (can do this with pancakes too). Cakes & frostings never come from a box or can. I started making our own ice cream last week and this week I will make our own breads. We want to start buying more organic items so this will help make our weekly budget stretch further.

Bananas, apples, frozen veggies, brown rice, whole wheat pasta and simple cuts of chicken (or opt for a whole chicken which feeds our family of 3 for 3-4 meals)

Get produce that is good priced fresh. Lettuces, celery, carrots, onions, cabbage. Those are nearly always low cost.

It just takes some practice

Where do you live? I'm in new York. The cost of living is a fortune. I easily spend $800 a month on groceries which does not include diapers, paper towel etc. you don't even wanna know what I spend on rent lol

I'm in Eastern Canada. Everything food wise is expensive here. I easily spend 600$/month for two of us. Hell, 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts will run you almost 30$ here when they aren't on sale, bone in - skin on is only about a dollar cheaper.

There was a guy on Bill Maher about 2 weeks ago who said "Calories are cheap, Nutrition is expensive" and I completely agree.

At the same time, being sick is a lot more expensive on both your health and wallet.

Since I started my journey, I've been a lot healthier than the same coworkers (who all caught horrible flu while I stayed just fine) who cracked jokes about my lifestyle change. Now they seldom laugh and most of them have started to try to get healthier themselves.

Where do you live? I'm in new York. The cost of living is a fortune. I easily spend $800 a month on groceries which does not include diapers, paper towel etc. you don't even wanna know what I spend on rent lol

I'm in Eastern Canada. Everything food wise is expensive here. I easily spend 600$/month for two of us. Hell, 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts will run you almost 30$ here when they aren't on sale, bone in - skin on is only about a dollar cheaper.

are you near a costco? they have the best prices on meat (I live in Ontario). I have 8 mouths to feed so every penny counts. Our grocery bills are over $300 a week on a non-meat week. I buy a ton at costco, they have a ton of gluten free options for me, lots of organic produce.