Organic Shopping
on a Budget

Organic shopping doesn't have to empty your wallet. Eight simple ways to cut costs while buying healthy food:

1. Farmers Markets
* Generally, prices are lower than at the supermarket, because there is no middleman between you and the farmer.
* Organic certification takes years, paperwork, and money; so not all farms at the market will have it yet. But the seller can tell you how the crops are grown. A pesticide-free strawberry or apple may be cheaper without certification - but it's still pesticide free.
* Near the end of the market's hours, vendors often slash prices to avoid hauling unsold goods home. If you can use what's left, you'll get a great bargain.

2. Bulk Items
The opposite of buying the jumbo pack at a big-box store.
Most organic food stores have a bulk aisle, with containers full of dried goods (beans, grains, trail mix, pasta)
Example: 67 cents worth of organic white popping corn, carried home in a bag and stored in a (re-used glass) jar made me about 40 batches of gourmet popcorn.

3. Buy Locally grown foods
Become a locavore and stop paying to ship your meals from all over the world.
Learn what's grown in your area and enjoy the abundance.

4. Buy more whole foods
Processed, packaged "convenience" foods are much more expensive. If you need pre-made meals or single servings handy, cook a large batch ahead and freeze portions for later.

5. Buy perishables regularly
Use small quanitities of organic produce while they are fresh. Make short organic shopping trips often, on your way home or while on other necessary trips. (In Europe, most people buy dinner ingredients at the end of each work day, in their neighborhood markets.)
Example: one organic avocado costs less than a bag of 4 non-organic ones, if two go bad on the counter.

6. Try the house brand
At high-end organic food stores (Whole Foods, Wild Oats, and the like), the house brand sits next to the other manufacturers' offerings. Quality is comparable; and the price is usually considerably lower.

7. Visit your local discount grocery or liquidator store
Mine carries a changing selection of organic produce and packaged foods - whatever hasn't moved fast enough for the high-end stores.
I regularly find frozen meals by Seeds of Change and Amy's Kitchen, bags of organic potatoes, Clif bars, and Newman's Own sauces and dressings, and some organic coffee and teas.
I just cruise the aisles to see what is on offer, and save 50-70% on average.

8. Eat less meat
Cutting back on meat will reduce your fat calories and cholestrol, and lower your carbon footprint, as well as saving you money.
Organic vegetables, beans, and whole grains are much cheaper per serving and provide the phytonutrients, fiber, and amino acids your body needs.
If you want to keep some meat and fish in your diet, buy less and put your organic shopping dollars where they count - into safe seafood organic beef, eggs, chicken, lamb, and pork, and especially into products from animals that lived a good life.

Not sure why your organic shopping choices matter?
Review the health and environment facts.