I go to Whole Foods here in Mississauga for meat only. No other market around has better quality meat. None. Its the only thing I buy there unless I see something on a crazy good sale because of prices. As I walk around I see ppls carts and at checkout spending 100s of $$$ for what could be had for half at local grocery store. Im pretty sure people are willing to spend their money there on everything because of labels such as organic, healthy etc.
My question is.... if money was no issue for you, would you be buying organic, grass fed, pastured etc.? Or would you still stick to what you buy now. I will be honest, I dont know and I only shop for myself.
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Unsure
Things I'd start to buy if money wasn't a factor-organic leafy greens, potatoes and berries, pastured/locally raised pork and chicken for my family (we already get local, grass fed beef and free range eggs from my very awesome in-laws), fancy cheeses, a wider range of produce (I usually stick with sales/cheaper options), explore more with different 'specialty' grains, and then higher quality baking ingredients. I love to bake, but stick with recipes that use cheap/simple ingredients.
Along with this-I would start shopping a lot more at farmers markets in the summer. Would love to be able to buy local honey, jams, specialty meats/cheeses etc etc.
Ahhh, some day
If money were truly no object, I'd have a personal nutritionist and chef!
I don't believe there's any benefit to organic processed foods like cereal, chips, breads etc. I'm not convinced that the benefits to either me or the planet are worth the costs of buying organic bread, flour, sugar, etc. So I don't do that.
I'm doing this while feeding my family on USDA Thrifty Food Plan budget levels. It's possible. It requires a lot of meal planning, shopping from a specific list, and some up-front purchases like joining a CSA to pre-buy my veggies from a local farmer from June to October (and then eating what I get rather than going out to buy different stuff). The meat from local farmers is all frozen because they freeze immediately after slaughter/butchering, so you have to plan in advance to thaw what you need. We also stretch meat with greens and legumes. And we make a lot of stuff ourselves from scratch instead of prepared meals or pre-prepped ingredients.
So: Money is a huge issue for us right now, and I'm still choosing to spend more of it than I might otherwise to get *some* organic/local/free range/etc products. But I wouldn't go to Whole Foods to do it, because there are much cheaper ways to get there -- I'm probably spending less for the food I buy than many people spend on all-conventional groceries.
All chickens in the US have no added hormones: http://extension.msstate.edu/publications/publications/chickens-do-not-receive-growth-hormones-so-why-all-the-confusion
Any feedback about antibiotic free chicken?
I'd buy what I do now, but I already spend more than I have to on some stuff, for reasons that make sense to me.
For what it's worth, I often buy produce at WF during the off-season (when I can't get much from the green market and don't get a farm box), and it's not inherently expensive. You can buy conventional at WF and I usually do. It has a better overall selection of produce than most other groceries that I go to, so when I'm there I tend to pick up a bunch of stuff (I tend to go on the weekend with my car, vs. my closer stores where I am always on foot).
I don't get meat there, however, since one of my closer stores is a really good meat market with a decent selection of produce and a bunch of specialty items. I buy there because I like their sourcing and they are a genuine local business. (I buy the majority of my meat from farms, however.)
WF also has a wider variety of things in some areas than my main grocery, but then the grocery has a wider selection in some other areas (like middle eastern things). I get oil and vinegar mostly from another local store, same with many speciality items. (I live near a good local shopping area with lots of shops and prefer to shop there as much as possible.)
I am not motivated by organic (or labels, I think the 365 label is on some good things that are not totally expensive in reality, but I don't think it's a status symbol, obviously). I am motivated by other things that I wouldn't assume everyone cares about or should.
I haven't looked at that in a while so just took a peek, I wish lol. The Thrifty plan puts our family at 194.80 a week. Our grocery budget is $100 a week and that includes non-food items like pet food, cleaning/laundry supplies, tp/paper goods etc. My kids also do their schooling at home so they do not receive subsidized hot lunches etc. Some of those numbers are nuts!
The organic industry/supporters has harmed the production of helpful products in the past that can improve the quality of and save many lives around the world. (Eg, golden rice with the increased beta-carotene levels to help prevent blindness in third world countries) This industry should not be endorsed in any way. May scientific advancement triumph over fear of the misunderstood and misrepresented.
If money was no consideration, I MIGHT consider buying some organic meats and produce IF they were the ones that look the best. I also might still refuse to buy it because of the overly jacked up prices.
We are in a position to have our house paid off soon, and there are still a lot of "Dream vacations" I'd prioritize over insisting on organic stuff all the time, so I'm not sure I'll ever get to the point of money not being a consideration.
Maybe it's antibiotics. That's how much attention I pay to that kind of stuff.
I like to shop later at night because of this. Maybe an hour or an hour and a half before closing. Everything is quieter and the employees seem happier despite being very much ready to go to home (in part because there are fewer people but probably also because they see the light and the end of the tunnel). There is just a sheer lack of people and the people who are there seem to have the same idea as I do - get groceries quickly and leave.
Farmers market on the other hand...now that's chaotic - especially in the summer. In the winter it's not nearly as bad, but the summer is a joke.
I'm almost positive people who opposed golden rice did so because of their opposition to genetic engineered food, not because of their opposition of conventionally farmed food. I did a quick google search and this seems to be the case. Being anti GMO and pro organic farming practices are two different things. For the sake of clearing up some potential misunderstandings, there are people who are opposed to both "conventional" farming practices and GMOs, but they are ultimately two different issues.
And no, I don't have strong feelings about either of these issues.
But shopping there on a regular basis is just a dream, a fantasy for me. But if I ever marry rich, oh yes, oh yes.
Carry on...
Seriously?