STOP saying healthy food is more expensive

$30 for 2 for a week? You guys either eat very little or I'm shopping at the wrong grocery store. I'm pretty frugal and my bill each week from Safeway is about $90 for 3.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

I don't even have that much spare a week :') plus also its just me who eats this healthy food, my boyfriend hates most vegetables and fruit, so if I buy a box of strawberries they go to waste

ANYWAYS what are you doing at the store that takes so long? i BIKE to the store, pick out what i want, bike home in under 30 minutes. everyone making excuses here is just lazy and wasteful.

You do understand people live in different places, have different incomes, jobs, and family situations?

Take me.

The grocery store with the best prices is 20 minutes by *car* from me, and I live in a reasonably suburban area, let alone rural. Plus, and I live in New England, where it rains and snows and for a few months out of the year. Not to mention Boston drivers who kill cyclists for sport.

On top of that, try hauling food about 20 heavy bags of milk, eggs, canned good... food for five, for that distance, on a bike. The food fills the entire trunk of my car for a week.

Sometimes there is just no arguing with an irrational mind. I'm not going to engage anymore cause I may just say something cheeky. Anyone who wants to add me... feel free.

I don't mind splurging for fresh and quality.

BUT

It is unfortunately not always cheaper to eat fresh. Totally depends on where you live.

There is a chain of grocery stores here in Ohio called Kroger. The Arizona equivalent is Frey's, I believe. We go to AZ annually to visit family, and I cook for everyone because they dig my cooking.

Red pepper at Krogers? $2.50. It's small and I can't tell you how many times I've cut one open to find mold.

Red pepper at Frey's? 99 cents, big fat and juicy. No mold.

All the produce I've encountered is big and bountiful and affordable.

HOWEVER, I understand the average income is substantially lower there. So...maybe it all evens out somehow?

At any rate, I don't think the OP meant to come off as judgmental as some are taking it. Always dangerous to make broad statements/absolutes in the forums, though!

I honestly just bought $30 worth of fresh veggies, whole grain bread, meats, milk and cheese. I know it will last my hubby and I at least an entire week....

I calculated how much it would cost to get mac and cheese and chips and soda and crappy foods, I could get about the same amount of food, but a bag of chips goes so fast and it's not filling and makes you feel uber icky. I know that if I bought $30 of junk food, fast food, quick meals - I would not be able to sustain more than a few days between two people.

So, please stop with the excuses that eating healthy is too expensive. Grow a garden, pack some carrots, stay up an extra 10 mins to prepare a meal for the next day. Jeepers Creepers, quit complaining and research what groceries you have locally and what seasons good food comes in season/what freezes for winter when fruits and veggies go up in price.

I've written out 3 replies to this and deleted all 3 because I can't be even reasonably civil in the face of this degree of blatant ignorance, condescension, and stupidity. The long and short comes to: 1) You've quite obviously never been significantly poor enough to have real food choices to make, yet you want to talk about their food choices like you have some idea of what you speak of. 2) You obviously have never fed a significant number of people or children and have no real concept of what is important in food choices first and foremost when on a limited budget 3) Gardens are a luxury. Deep freezers are a luxury. Time to do the **** you're talking about is a luxury. A huge number of people don't have those luxuries.

Frankly, your false moral superiority, condescending attitude, and desire to look down upon others based on your subjectively better food choices without any knowledge of their situation is sickening and deserves nothing but scorn and ridicule.

^ Wins the thread.

I honestly just bought $30 worth of fresh veggies, whole grain bread, meats, milk and cheese. I know it will last my hubby and I at least an entire week....

I calculated how much it would cost to get mac and cheese and chips and soda and crappy foods, I could get about the same amount of food, but a bag of chips goes so fast and it's not filling and makes you feel uber icky. I know that if I bought $30 of junk food, fast food, quick meals - I would not be able to sustain more than a few days between two people.

So, please stop with the excuses that eating healthy is too expensive. Grow a garden, pack some carrots, stay up an extra 10 mins to prepare a meal for the next day. Jeepers Creepers, quit complaining and research what groceries you have locally and what seasons good food comes in season/what freezes for winter when fruits and veggies go up in price.

I've written out 3 replies to this and deleted all 3 because I can't be even reasonably civil in the face of this degree of blatant ignorance, condescension, and stupidity. The long and short comes to: 1) You've quite obviously never been significantly poor enough to have real food choices to make, yet you want to talk about their food choices like you have some idea of what you speak of. 2) You obviously have never fed a significant number of people or children and have no real concept of what is important in food choices first and foremost when on a limited budget 3) Gardens are a luxury. Deep freezers are a luxury. Time to do the **** you're talking about is a luxury. A huge number of people don't have those luxuries.

Frankly, your false moral superiority, condescending attitude, and desire to look down upon others based on your subjectively better food choices without any knowledge of their situation is sickening and deserves nothing but scorn and ridicule.

Well said. However, I do not agree that ridicule is warranted here. I do hope that examples provided by others will help OP to see that there are many different circumstances, some very different from OPs.

lol its so weird how people are trying to make excuses for filling their body with toxic garbage. i spend about $120 +/- on groceries per month so yeah i guess that's $30 a week. mainly fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, and dried beans, and rice. i shop at asian markets, farmers markets, and grocery stores. i would rather eat a giant delicious healthy meal and feel awesome later than eat some ****ty salty candy ultra processed fast food and feel awful. it takes more time and initially costs more (to stock a pantry), but once you get used to cooking for yourself you will never want to go back to eating garbage.

lol @ food other than fruits and veggies, eggs, dried beans & rice being "toxic garbage".

also, i wish I had time to go to 3 grocery stores.

lol wut? i didnt say other food than that was garbage! filling your body with processed food makes you sick! and is expensive. its just a fact.

ANYWAYS what are you doing at the store that takes so long? i BIKE to the store, pick out what i want, bike home in under 30 minutes. everyone making excuses here is just lazy and wasteful.

I'd like to know where you get the "fact" that processed food makes you sick. Please feel free to cite me peer-reviewed journals and I'll recant my position.

And futhermore, is all processed food garbage that makes you sick? Do you honestly not think your Ruths Chris steak sandwich that is such a great deal you talked about earlier in this very thread is processed????

In terms of going to the store, having a full time job, owning a home, and working out 6 days a week precludes me from getting to 3 different stores. I spend about 1.5 hours grocery shopping at one store and get everything I need.

Additionally, your post reeks of entitlement & condescension in your blatant lack of understanding of the fact that people's different economic circumstances likely prevent them from eating exactly the way you do. Please go volunteer at a soup kitchen or something before my head explodes.

haha whatever you say. my current position is managing a soup kitchen. i feel hundreds of people a month for peanuts. read about the chemicals in your food. or really just take a middle school biology class. ruths chris steak sandwich is delicious. dont knock that sandwich.

3 years ago i was unemployed and living off food stamps and plasma center donations. i sure as hell didnt spend my food stamps on potato chips.

you do realize you make absolutely no sense right? saying that you dont eat "processed foods" and "garbage" but that you love steak sandwiches and pizza? maybe you're the one who needs to take a science class.

lol wtf are you talking about? how does that not make any sense? can you read words? i didnt say i DONT eat processed foods, i said that they arent good for you. they arent nutrient dense, they make you feel like crap.

So, please stop with the excuses that eating healthy is too expensive. Grow a garden, pack some carrots, stay up an extra 10 mins to prepare a meal for the next day. Jeepers Creepers, quit complaining and research what groceries you have locally and what seasons good food comes in season/what freezes for winter when fruits and veggies go up in price.

OP, I know your heart's in the right place here, but do you actually grow your own garden?

Ok, a pack of carrot seeds may set you back only $1.19, but I have also spend a huge chunk of money making sure those carrots (and my other vegetables) actually grow into something edible. Before those carrots even went into the ground, there was $$$ going into that soil to make sure the earth was fertilized and healthy. Chicken wire fence was erected to keep the bunnies and raccoons out (kind of worked!), and hours upon hours every week making sure that the weeds didn't overtake the seedlings and it was properly watered. We pay for water too. All in all, we probably spent close to $300 on our garden this year and I'm sure we won't get that all money back through grocery savings.

Don't get me wrong, I love gardening, but I don't do it to keep my grocery bill down.

I have a decent sized garden. VERY true that it can be expensive. Here is how I addressed lowering the cost:
1.) Soil. I invested in compost bins. Now, instead of paying more to the trash company to haul away my yard refuse (tree leaves, garden waste, kitchen non-animal waste), I compost. Great soil comes out of those things. Return on Investment/Breakeven is a about 3 years, which has passed, so now......I get all my soil for free because "I make it myself".
2.) Fertilizer. The composted soil pretty much meets my needs as I mix in dirt from my property for additional trace minerals.
3.) Pesticides. I don't do them. Instead, I encourage pest predators. Example. I was watching a worm eat a hole in a pole bean leaf. As I watched, as wasp landed on the leaf, walked over to the worm (catepillar, not a round or flat worm), and began to eat it. Eureka (it means "I found it").....I just have to stop spraying wasp nests around the house (except I do spray when they show up around my entrance doors). So what about fungus (e.g. powdery mildew, etc.). I use a sesame oil spray. It creates a physical barrier to the fungal spores. Works well, as long as you apply it at the right times of year. Bottom line, I get spots on my apples, but the birds and the bees flock to my yard (and so does a hawk now, that targets the little birds).
4.) Water. Big issue for me. In fact, I started the garden initially to save on water (lots of bermuda grass). Now I have a drip system. Between the house (low flow faucets, dual flush toilets, etc.) I've reduced my water consumption by 50%. Here in SoCal, water keeps getting more and more expensive (15%/yr increases going on 3 years now, and notice of 2 more years of 15% per year compounded increases ahead).
5.) Plastic bags. The breathable kind for putting excess harvest into when I give away produce to friends and neighbors.
6.) Sun tan lotion. Skin cancer will be very expensive. I better buy more of this as I truly enjoy harvesting over 33 different kinds of edibles from my yard (two avocado trees ,6 kinds of berries, 7 dwarf fruit trees, etc. etc etc.).
7.) Cost of the land. Ummmmm. 7000sq ft lot. 1500 sq ft house. Approx 4000 sq ft front yard (traditional landscaping) and boat/rv pad. That leaves about 1500 sq ft. for garden. Ground is probably the biggest nut to crack (pun intended). Look into a community garden, is all I can recommend.

Now.....most people don't want to get their hands dirty, let alone "work" to grow their own food. It seems to me Americans think they are entitled to convenience foods, even if it drains their money (higher cost, and medical expenses in latter life). Gardening is work. So I call it a hobby, and I focus on the positives (e.g. harvest).

You're choice. Choose wisely. Don't let conventional wisdom or food industry marketing/ads miss-lead you. Be in control of your destiny, not a victim of it.

Reasonable Quality Steak: $26.99 a pound
Potato Chips: $3.99 a bag

Just sayin!

$26.99 lb for steak? What? A good steak in California runs about $7.00 a lb - that's three servings of protein.

If you just want to save money, skip the bag of chips at $3.99 and just drink a half cup of cooking oil and choke down a few tablespoons of salt...much cheaper! I think the issue is nutrition, right?

Ha. Not where I live in California. Steak is $$.

I eat healthy and it isn't nearly as expensive as people complain. But to be fair, if I was that brokex I could buy a bunch of cup of noodles for about 25 cents each. You can't get cheaper than that.

Reasonable Quality Steak: $26.99 a pound
Potato Chips: $3.99 a bag

Just sayin!

$26.99 lb for steak? What? A good steak in California runs about $7.00 a lb - that's three servings of protein.

If you just want to save money, skip the bag of chips at $3.99 and just drink a half cup of cooking oil and choke down a few tablespoons of salt...much cheaper! I think the issue is nutrition, right?

Here in California you can't even get grocery-store garbage steak for $7.00 a pound. That's what ground beef goes for.

And one pound is one serving. Unless we're talking ribeye, then 24oz is a serving...

So, please stop with the excuses that eating healthy is too expensive. Grow a garden, pack some carrots, stay up an extra 10 mins to prepare a meal for the next day. Jeepers Creepers, quit complaining and research what groceries you have locally and what seasons good food comes in season/what freezes for winter when fruits and veggies go up in price.

OP, I know your heart's in the right place here, but do you actually grow your own garden?

Ok, a pack of carrot seeds may set you back only $1.19, but I have also spend a huge chunk of money making sure those carrots (and my other vegetables) actually grow into something edible. Before those carrots even went into the ground, there was $$$ going into that soil to make sure the earth was fertilized and healthy. Chicken wire fence was erected to keep the bunnies and raccoons out (kind of worked!), and hours upon hours every week making sure that the weeds didn't overtake the seedlings and it was properly watered. We pay for water too. All in all, we probably spent close to $300 on our garden this year and I'm sure we won't get that all money back through grocery savings.

Don't get me wrong, I love gardening, but I don't do it to keep my grocery bill down.

I have a decent sized garden. VERY true that it can be expensive. Here is how I addressed lowering the cost:
1.) Soil. I invested in compost bins. Now, instead of paying more to the trash company to haul away my yard refuse (tree leaves, garden waste, kitchen non-animal waste), I compost. Great soil comes out of those things. Return on Investment/Breakeven is a about 3 years, which has passed, so now......I get all my soil for free because "I make it myself".
2.) Fertilizer. The composted soil pretty much meets my needs as I mix in dirt from my property for additional trace minerals.
3.) Pesticides. I don't do them. Instead, I encourage pest predators. Example. I was watching a worm eat a hole in a pole bean leaf. As I watched, as wasp landed on the leaf, walked over to the worm (catepillar, not a round or flat worm), and began to eat it. Eureka (it means "I found it").....I just have to stop spraying wasp nests around the house (except I do spray when they show up around my entrance doors). So what about fungus (e.g. powdery mildew, etc.). I use a sesame oil spray. It creates a physical barrier to the fungal spores. Works well, as long as you apply it at the right times of year. Bottom line, I get spots on my apples, but the birds and the bees flock to my yard (and so does a hawk now, that targets the little birds).
4.) Water. Big issue for me. In fact, I started the garden initially to save on water (lots of bermuda grass). Now I have a drip system. Between the house (low flow faucets, dual flush toilets, etc.) I've reduced my water consumption by 50%. Here in SoCal, water keeps getting more and more expensive (15%/yr increases going on 3 years now, and notice of 2 more years of 15% per year compounded increases ahead).
5.) Plastic bags. The breathable kind for putting excess harvest into when I give away produce to friends and neighbors.
6.) Sun tan lotion. Skin cancer will be very expensive. I better buy more of this as I truly enjoy harvesting over 33 different kinds of edibles from my yard (two avocado trees ,6 kinds of berries, 7 dwarf fruit trees, etc. etc etc.).
7.) Cost of the land. Ummmmm. 7000sq ft lot. 1500 sq ft house. Approx 4000 sq ft front yard (traditional landscaping) and boat/rv pad. That leaves about 1500 sq ft. for garden. Ground is probably the biggest nut to crack (pun intended). Look into a community garden, is all I can recommend.

Now.....most people don't want to get their hands dirty, let alone "work" to grow their own food. It seems to me Americans think they are entitled to convenience foods, even if it drains their money (higher cost, and medical expenses in latter life). Gardening is work. So I call it a hobby, and I focus on the positives (e.g. harvest).

You're choice. Choose wisely. Don't let conventional wisdom or food industry marketing/ads miss-lead you. Be in control of your destiny, not a victim of it.

You may be my hero... and I'm only up to gardening in pots! That's a lot of investment, but we are doing it gradually over time and I don't actually put a lot of time into it. I wish some folks would just put a tomato plant in a pot - it's not that much money or work that way. I know some can't but it makes me happy and saves a buck here and there. It can be very gratifying even in small scales - cheap mood boosters! The cost to have a single pot or two isn't much at all (where I live - nobody attack - I meant well).

Healthy whole food is more expensive.

Whew! Remembered those days! Cheese on oodles of noodles was the bomb dot com!

hehe, I couldn't eat them for almost two years after I didn't have to anymore... but now every now and again, I want nothing more than a nice package of ramen with a slice of american cheese melted in right at the end. Beef. Has to be beef... everyone else seems to prefer oriental or chicken for that though. Having gotten older and to be a far better cook I could have probably gotten some dried beans and mixed things up a bit (red beans and rice, peanut butter hummus, etc) but then it was cheap, filling, fast, and it beat eating nothing for days at a time if I had something that wasn't ramen or rice.

it is more expensive

unless you starve yourself like 90% here eating 1500 calories

not going to buy junk though