Why does health food = expensive?

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deebrio
deebrio Posts: 6 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Remember when Kale was just a decoration around a buffet table? It was probably about 10 cents a pound. Now that its popular, it's roughly $2.50 a pound. I think more people would more inclined to eat healthier if it was more affordable. Any thoughts?
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  • clipartghost
    clipartghost Posts: 32 Member
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    Kale's been a constant $0.99/lb for me. I haven't noticed any changes.
  • deebrio
    deebrio Posts: 6 Member
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    Maybe it's where I live, but it is 2.50 a pound even at the cheaper supermarkets. Glad it's only 99 for you!
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    Kale organic at my regular market: 1.19. At the organic co-cop 2.49.
  • MikeSanchez2323
    MikeSanchez2323 Posts: 30 Member
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    it doesn't have to be. I look for great deals every week and found an awesome produce shop near my house...I got 20 limes for 99 cents the other day!
  • ShandaLeaS
    ShandaLeaS Posts: 136 Member
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    My food budget has stayed the same. I but what's in season and on sale. Some weeks I get bananas others oranges kinda thing. I don't eat out as much as before (which was almost always twice a day) so I'm actually probably saving money.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
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    Kale is still a decoration in my book! :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

    Plenty of healthy things to be had at good prices. Buying fruits and veggies that are in season and on sale helps with price. Depending on where you live, try to hit farmer's markets as well, sometimes you can find great deals on really fresh, local stuff.

    And shop around. Our local Grocery Outlet has small, but decent produce section. And smaller stores can be great too - I went into a small local chain in my city the other day, first time in 20 years of living here that I've ever gone in, and they had a huge produce department, with really fresh items and great prices! I will definitely shop there again.
  • deebrio
    deebrio Posts: 6 Member
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    Thanks guys! Lots of good suggestions here! I love farmers markets but NY in the winter doesn't have much going on. But spring is here so there should be a bunch opening soon!!
  • JPW1990
    JPW1990 Posts: 2,424 Member
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    Don't confuse trendy with healthy. You can the same thing from collard greens and other dark green leafy vegetables as you do from kale, without having to pay for kale (or taste it, for that matter). Spend some time on the USDA site comparing the stats on different foods, and you'll see a lot of "superfoods" aren't really different than cheaper alternatives.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,576 Member
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    If you are planning to cook greens like kale, I'd suggest buying frozen. SO much cheaper. Kale is very hardy and easy to grow, so if you have room you could grow your own. It grows well in containers if don't have a yard.
  • j75j75
    j75j75 Posts: 854 Member
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    It's simple supply and demand. As demand goes up and supply can't keep up the price goes up. Also when farmers don't use pesticides or GMOs they have a tougher time with pests and growing food that is "perfect" in the eyes of the consumer. That means they have more waste and less that they can sell. So what they do sell has to recover their costs and give them a bit of profit to live on. Also animals raised without hormones, antibiotics and are grass fed do not grow as quickly and may get sick. This again raises costs.

    But you can bypass most of this by supporting local growers and by growing some of your own food as well. Most places also allow you to raise some livestock but I'm sure about the laws on that in NY...
  • LovelyIvy466
    LovelyIvy466 Posts: 387 Member
    edited April 2015
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    Ahh, another New Yorker. I think people who live outside of NYC don't really understand how bad it can get. If you live in Manhattan and/or don't have a car it can be especially hard to find healthy food for a reasonable price- the upscale markets are beautiful, have a huge selection and charge outrageously, while the cheaper markets often don't have the things you actually want to eat. When they do have the things you want, the quality is often not great, and sometimes the prices are just as bad. I currently live in the outer boroughs, which is both easier (price-wise) and harder (most markets are smaller, don't have the selection), but when I lived in Manhattan it was very hard to cut down costs.

    The prices for fruits and vegetables in particular are freaking outrageous. The farmer's markets are EVEN WORSE, talk about price gouging! I have found the best places to get a reasonable price are either buying frozen and in bulk at Costco/BJ's, schlepping over to Trader Joe's (and enduring that freakin line of death) or Fairway market. TJ has the most reasonable prices on veggies and fruits, although they carry a pretty limited supply, and you're not going to find everything you want. It's also the most annoying place to shop by far, but you either pay with your money or your time...
  • Camo_xxx
    Camo_xxx Posts: 1,082 Member
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    Because everybody wants to make a buck and they can charge what the market will pay. The trendy superfood of the day provides the oppertunity to increase margins. Plenty of equally nutritious alternatives at better prices to be had.
  • SnuggleSmacks
    SnuggleSmacks Posts: 3,732 Member
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    It's nearly Farmers Market time, which means lots of cheap veggies. Also, if you have an Aldi's, their choices are fairly limited, but very cheap. I've purchased 3 lbs of sweet potatoes for $.50 there regularly. And if you have a BJ's Warehouse nearby, they have great produce cheap, and it's not all packaged in giant packages like at Costco (which is also good, but you better be prepared to eat a lot of whatever you purchase.)
  • sullus
    sullus Posts: 2,839 Member
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    j75j75 wrote: »
    It's simple supply and demand. As demand goes up and supply can't keep up the price goes up. Also when farmers don't use pesticides or GMOs they have a tougher time with pests and growing food that is "perfect" in the eyes of the consumer. That means they have more waste and less that they can sell. So what they do sell has to recover their costs and give them a bit of profit to live on. Also animals raised without hormones, antibiotics and are grass fed do not grow as quickly and may get sick. This again raises costs.

    But you can bypass most of this by supporting local growers and by growing some of your own food as well. Most places also allow you to raise some livestock but I'm sure about the laws on that in NY...

    I disagree about supply and demand. Its trendy, so they are jacking up the prices. I think its that simple.

    Also - there is pesticide usage on organic produce.
  • SnuggleSmacks
    SnuggleSmacks Posts: 3,732 Member
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    Spinach is still pretty cheap around here, and it's just as good as kale. I like it better, in fact, in salads and such.
  • j75j75
    j75j75 Posts: 854 Member
    edited April 2015
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    sullus wrote: »
    j75j75 wrote: »
    It's simple supply and demand. As demand goes up and supply can't keep up the price goes up. Also when farmers don't use pesticides or GMOs they have a tougher time with pests and growing food that is "perfect" in the eyes of the consumer. That means they have more waste and less that they can sell. So what they do sell has to recover their costs and give them a bit of profit to live on. Also animals raised without hormones, antibiotics and are grass fed do not grow as quickly and may get sick. This again raises costs.

    But you can bypass most of this by supporting local growers and by growing some of your own food as well. Most places also allow you to raise some livestock but I'm sure about the laws on that in NY...

    I disagree about supply and demand. Its trendy, so they are jacking up the prices. I think its that simple.

    Also - there is pesticide usage on organic produce.

    You may be right

    Also - True, except synthetics

  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 9,984 Member
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    Eat local and seasonally when you can. Factory organic eggs 6.49. I just picked up 2 dozen eggs about an hour ago from my local and while looking out the window, there they were. 3.50 doz and go down to 3.00 when the ground isn't frozen. 2 lbs of baby greens picked before the sun goes over the yard arm at 6.00 a lb, and we won't even talk about quality compared to any grocery store container full of limp hydro greens. Local lamb is expensive though, but when I buy it whole and break it down it's cheap.....on and on. You just need to make the time, if it's important and it is for me, but if it isn't then it's just something to complain about as far as I can tell.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    edited April 2015
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    It doesn't have to be. You could stick to cheaper stuff. I mean not everyone needs kale to lose weight (I for one never had it). You could stick to either "boring" or "uncommon" things like papaya (a fiber, vitamin c and potassium powerhouse), oranges, cabbage, carrots, green onions, cactus, chayote (nice folate boost), bananas, cucumbers, tomatoes, cantaloup (vitamin A)...etc.

    You could budget your veggies and fruits with this:
    http://www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/fvwretail.pdf

    They update it weekly.
  • deebrio
    deebrio Posts: 6 Member
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    I actually don't even like kale! Haha, I was just using it as an example of when something... anything becomes trendy, they jack up the prices. Health food has become so trendy that it has not become an alternative to some people. Even for a fast food place, a burger at McD's is $1 but a salad is about $5.
    I have tried to grow my own in my backyard and be organic but there are so many bugs and pests, that I lose half my tomatoes and cukes before they have even ripened. If I spray pesticide, then what's the point? I have found the organic ones don't really work. Would LOVE to grow romaine but haven't quite mastered it yet. I am going to try again this spring and summer. Would love to also get chickens for eggs but pretty sure my neighbors would kill me. Thanks for all the suggestions!! A fairway opened up near me so I'm real excited about that, and I usually go to Costco, but based on some of these posts I'm going to check out BJ's. Happy Spring!

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