As I coach people on becoming vegan, one common refrain I hear is that it's too expensive. When funds are low, the cheap burger or basket of chicken can appear to be the best value -- the most calories for the lowest price. We've been aggressively peddled the idea that a healthy diet is an expensive diet, something only for rich folks. And our experience seems to bear that out.
I understand the frustration. It doesn't seem right that meat should be so cheap and fresh vegetables, especially organic ones, relatively expensive. But once you look into it, the true cost of eating animal protein is higher than you can imagine. And being veganish in your approach to food is not only healthier by every measure, but it can actually be considerably cheaper as well. In fact, many staples of a vegan diet cost very little and can be found in any grocery store -- not just in specialty markets. Whole grains like quinoa or barley or brown rice, legumes like chickpeas or soybeans, and other beans like black-eyed peas and black beans are very inexpensive -- certainly cheaper than processed and packaged foods. Bought in bulk whole grains and beans can cost just pennies per meal. And because they are full of fiber they make you feel full and satisfied (put them into soups, stews, salads, burritos, etc.), without the dangerous saturated fat of animal protein. Fresh vegetables and fruits can be found at supermarkets and farmers' markets for very reasonable prices. Organic and specialty stores are great, but it's certainly not necessary to empty your wallet in order to eat healthfully.
Beans, grains, veggies -- these are the staples of populations around the world. Think of Mexico and South America, where inexpensive rice and beans coupled with corn tortillas and avocados are part of every diet; or rural China, where tofu with vegetables and rice, and maybe a very small bit of meat, is the norm; or India where people eat lentils or chickpeas and vegetables every day. Not only are these populations by no means wealthy, they also don't have the diseases of wealthy countries. The general populations who eat these simple diets may get waterborne illnesses and lung infections from bad environmental conditions, but they don't have anywhere near the rates of cancer, heart disease, and diabetes that we have -- until they are exposed to our Western diet, that is.
And that's something to think about. Not only is a healthful plant-based diet less expensive at the grocery store (unless you go crazy for packaged convenience foods, of course), it saves you personally and saves us societally in health care and many other direct and indirect costs. If you think these don't affect you so much, think again. On the individual level alone, consider that your health insurance never pays for everything: even the best of plans charge deductibles and disallow certain medications. Being sick is expensive. More than that, a huge part of our country's annual budget is given over to health-care costs, paid for by your tax dollars. And indirect health-care costs due to lost productivity adversely affect you in the form of higher taxes, too.
On the health-care front, when you consider that meat and dairy foods clog our bodies with saturated fat, growth hormones, and antibiotics, things that have been conclusively linked to cancer, heart disease, and obesity, as well as a general "blah" feeling, it's certainly a lot less expensive -- and less painful -- to prevent debilitating diseases through our food choices than it is to treat them later (through bypass surgery or angioplasty, for example, which can run up tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills).
Money-Saving Tips
Vegan Action | Going Vegan | Eating Vegan
Vegetarian diet: How to get the best nutrition - MayoClinic.com
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Captain Marty's Rules for Eating Vegan in a Non-Vegan Restaurant.
http://vegansaurus.com/post/4926183583/captain-martys-rules-for-vegan-dining-in-a-non-vegan
The problem is when you're hungry and have a buck in your pocket that 99 cent MacDonald/MacDeath cheeseburger sounds a lot better than buying 2 packets of quinoa.
Fight to end the federal meat/dairy/egg subsidies.
Marty
Marty's Flying Vegan Review
www.martysnycveggiereview.blogspot.com
@veganpilotmarty
1.) Cook dried beans - the variety is endless and there is nothing cheaper. You can make falafel, cannellini bruschetta, enchiladas, black bean and corn salad...any ethnic cuisine your heart desires.
2.) Shop at ethnic markets...the variety of fresh vegetables and fruits is often better and cheaper.
3.) Peanut butter isn't just for sandwiches...sesame noodles and African dishes elevate it to dinner status.
4.) Cook in quantity - convenience foods like 'veggie burgers' cost a fortune and are high in sodium, etc. I always have a huge stack of homemade veggie burgers in the freezer that cost next to nothing to make and taste so much better because you can season them to your own tastes.
5.) Grow a garden if you can. Yes, the neighbors may run in August when they see you coming with another armload of squash needing a good home, but things like snow peas, berries, and basil for pesto cost a fortune in the store and freeze great (taking up so little space that you can enjoy them year-round).
6.) Learn how much you really need to eat. You won't be fat and you'll be saving money by taking those leftovers for lunch. There is no excuse for seven-night-a week gluttony - personally or ethically.
7.) Being vegan is easy and cheap. Remember, there is nothing cheaper than beans, except excuses.
I'll wait.
Recently after cooking a vegan meal for friends they began discussing the price of meat and meat products ...oxtails came up and apparently are really pricey. I just stared blankly.
I consume legumes several times a week in several forms- dal, hummus, soups, and with rice; I eat sweet potatoes/yams for breakfast or lunch, grains such as oatmeal and "quinoa" are also a staple and all these foods allow for smaller consumption while being very filling. I swear after eating a sweet potato sprinkIed with cinnamon I am not hungry for hours.
Produce use to be pricier but between farmers markets and stores like Trader Joe's I find cheap produce.The biggest expense for me are soy milk and nuts and nut butters. I stock cheapie peanut butter and pricey almond butter and keep on hand cashews and walnuts for a daily snack.
Processed foods are a no-no. Also through veganism I also discovered that I need less food overall.
ox tails??? ewwww
lol
love quinoa....have you ever made quinoa pudding? like rice pudding only with quinoa...yummie.
I buy my beef from sustainable farms that only raise their cows on pasture. That typically means the price of my beef is a little more than grocery store (CAFO) beef, but I prefer to put my money where my mouth is in terms of my commitment to healthful eating and toward sustainable agriculture. If I buy in bulk, my price is substantially cheaper, rivaling grocery store prices, but were I to order a 2-lb. oxtail, it would cost $2.99 a pound as an a la carte item.
That could then be made into a hearty soup or stew with lots of vegetables, making enough servings to have leftovers for lunch and even to freeze the extras. All told, you're probably looking at something under $2 a serving.
Oxtail is nothing if not affordable. It is, for those of us who eat meat, rather tasty, something along the lines of pot roast.
BTW, I also eat the items you list, and eschew processed foods. I agree that making your own food requires a little more planning and work, but I find it rewarding.
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Apparently in NYC they are.,
US-78.4, Mexico-75.1, China-73.1, Paraguay (to rep South America)-71.9, India-63.7. It seems disingenuous to use other countries as visions of health when the US still has the longer life expectancy.
Willful Ignorance.
Google CSA and find one near you.