One of the most common things we hear in clinic is that healthy food costs too much. The truth is more encouraging. Some of the most nutritious foods available, including beans, lentils, eggs, oats, frozen vegetables, and seasonal produce, are also among the cheapest.
What drives the cost of eating up is usually waste, convenience foods, and shopping without a plan. Address those three things and most households can eat noticeably better for the same money or less.
Habits that cut the cost of eating well
These are the strategies we build into personalized meal plans for clients who need to watch their spending. None of them require special products.
- Plan meals for the week before you shop, and write a list from the plan
- Build meals around legumes, eggs, and whole grains several times a week
- Buy frozen and canned vegetables and fruit, which are just as nutritious as fresh
- Cook in batches and use leftovers for the next day's lunch
- Buy produce in season and in larger quantities when the price is low
