True or an excuse?

It costs more in my opinion. Buying fresh fruit and veg and organic meats is more than frozen or canned foods.

I think it's an excuse because I myself used to use it.

I find planning every meal and only buying what you need means a shop is cheaper and you're not tempted by offers on junk food in the shop thinking you might need it.

Well so far I am spending a lot more money at the grocery store ever since starting this weightloss journey. I'm eating a lot more protein and veggies and a lot less carbs. I used to be a hardcore couponer and basically bought whatever I could get for free or super cheap - which meant lots of pasta, random treats, prepackaged meals, etc. Now fewer of the things that I stock up on have coupons to go with them so I find that I'm spending sometimes double what I spent before. It's a shock to the wallet but I still watch for free/cheap deals on the things that I use NOW, and stock up when I get the chance (pasta sauce, frozen/canned veggies, whole grain pasta, tortillas, etc). I'm just not able to get my grocery bill down quite like I used to since I look at a lot of the freebie deals now and think 'that would really not help me toward my goal'.

We are also eating a lot less fast food and takeout now though so that probably helps balance the overall food costs out a little bit.... Although when we DO get fast food for whatever reason, I don't just live off of the Dollar Menu anymore so my fast food is actually more expensive when we actually get it.... LOL

Excuse. My family is on a budget of about $75/week for 5 of us. We eat healthy just fine but it takes work.

That's amazing! You should share some tips!

Yes...please do!! That's better than I can do!!!

I buy produce in season, stock up when I can and freeze. You would be surprised some things that freeze well. My kids just had cantaloupe frozen when it was Buy 1 get 2 Free. They see it like as much of as a treat as ice cream. Also use coupons matched to the weeks sales and again stock up when I can.

A lot is saved buying meat on sale, or marked down when close to sell by date. Meat is more of a side in my family which saves a lot of money there. I also stretch meats into multiple meals. A whole chicken will make 4-5 meals for us. I also bake a lot of things, and sometimes make our crackers, bread tortillas etc.

Like I said it takes work but can be done.

I am really happy that you can do this and well done for making all that effort. I myself have done that when I lived in Australia. What would you suggest however for someone like myself, who lives in a tiny London flat that barely has a freezer at all? And definitely wouldn't fit one. Surely that puts a cramp in those plans? Perhaps it isn't so easy for every person/family out there? I have friends that live in a flat the size of ours with a family of 4! I have plenty of money to buy healthy food. Just saying, I can see how that wouldn't work for a lot of people.

It all depends on what you ate before and after.

Cheapest:
Locally, I can buy 1 Little Caesars large pepperoni pizza for $5. It is enough food for 1 person for day (Over 2400 calories).

Realistically, when you go on a business trip with your co-workers, you aren't fixing your own food. You're eating out and probably getting some kind of fast food item. Do you take the $4 grilled chicken salad that has 300 calories, or a $1 McDouble that has 500 calories?

Fast, frozen food at home? Party pizzas are like $1.50 and 800 calories. Lean cuisine frozen meals? $2.00 for 300 calories if they are on sale.

This is the ting though - healthy food does not have to be organic. It doesn't have to be steak and chicken breasts.
Lean ground beef and chicken drumsticks (remove the skin) are just as good.
Also, I think a lot of people put too much meat on their plates - about 120 g raw weight meat is an adequate serve for most people, not a half chicken breast at around 250-300g.
Produce - fresh when in season, but actually eat it FFS. Of course it costs more if you just hiff it out. Be realistic and buy less of it, or actually eat what you've bought. A head of broccoli here, in season, 49c. out of season? $3.49 and 1/3 the size.
If that's not possible, buy frozen - but don't buy fancy steamfresh gimmick frozen vegetables - buy bags of frozen peas or or cauliflower or beans or corn or whatever you fancy, and a microwave steamer bowl.
Got a yard? Grow your own. things like squash and courgettes you really have to try super-hard to kill. Got a balcony in an apartment? You can still grow stuff like lettuces, cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, beans in planter boxes and they look pretty : )
bulk casseroles, spaghetti sauces meatloaf and so on out with lentils or other legumes, or grated vegetables.

It all depends on what you ate before and after.

Cheapest:
Locally, I can buy 1 Little Caesars large pepperoni pizza for $5. It is enough food for 1 person for day (Over 2400 calories).

Realistically, when you go on a business trip with your co-workers, you aren't fixing your own food. You're eating out and probably getting some kind of fast food item. Do you take the $4 grilled chicken salad that has 300 calories, or a $1 McDouble that has 500 calories?

Fast, frozen food at home? Party pizzas are like $1.50 and 800 calories. Lean cuisine frozen meals? $2.00 for 300 calories if they are on sale.

Fast food at home? Can spread some peanut butter on some wholegrain bread and grab an apple out of the fridge faster than you can heat any frozen meal, and for cheaper. You can poach an egg in a cup in the microwave in 30 seconds.

I think it's an excuse. If people are smart about it, it can definitely be cheaper to eat healthier and at home too. Boxed and frozen dinners are often expensive and last one meal. A bunch of different healthy ingredients can be cheaper and make a filling meal plus leftovers. Our grocery bill dropped when I started buying whole foods, cooking more from scratch, and we stopped eating out/ordering in.

One big thing that helps that most people do not bother to do is meal planning. I sit down every Sunday and plan out our meals for the entire week. My fiancee and his daughter both get to have a "pick night" where they choose what they want me to make, and then I pick out the rest of the week. I try to use recipes that are using the same ingredients or use up stuff we have in the pantry and then make out my grocery list. Eventually I want to be a "couponer" and try to save even more that way. There are some weeks I've gone to the store for just a handful of items and we've eaten big meals all week. I also stock up on healthy (non-perishable or frozen) items when they go on super-sale. It's do-able, you just have to plan and be smart about it instead of throwing a bunch of $1 frozen pizzas in the cart on a whim.

Also, I think a lot of people put too much meat on their plates - about 120 g raw weight meat is an adequate serve for most people, not a half chicken breast at around 250-300g.

Isn't that dependent on their macro/calories goals, which is largely outside the scope of this conversation?

Your suggestion is roughly, what... 4 oz? That's a typical service according to manufacturers. At ~20g protein per 4oz serving, I'd have to eat 10 of your meals per day to hit my protein mark (obviously that takes away protein from other sources, but I'm oversimplifying for the sake of this conversation). That ain't going to happen. So while you don't have to agree with me eating 8oz of chicken breast or a 12oz steak, for those of us with higher calorie/protein goals a traditional serving just doesn't cut it.

the idea that it is more expensive to eat healthily has always annoyed the hell out of me. Since when was a 1 kg bag of oatmeal expensive? or a bag of carrots? frozen veges? apples? chicken is dirt cheap in the UK anyway. eggs are cheap (the barn kind particularly if you have no conscience). Peanut butter? Bag of potatoes, dirt cheap. Baked beans. cheap.
It is easier to eat cheap and healthy in my book then cheap and rubbish.