There are no two ways about it. Eating healthy costs money… sometimes more money than eating cheap junk if you go about it the wrong way. No matter, when you choose real food over fake food, the rewards of that choice will far outweigh the cost. Today, I want to share some tips on how you can afford eating real food on a budget.
Keep in mind that not all of these tips will be for everyone, but feel free to pick and choose what works best for your family. Making the switch to real food is a journey, and starting somewhere is better than not starting at all!
Why Eat Real Food?
Getting started with eating real foods can be a bit overwhelming, especially if you weren’t raised eating this way, but don’t worry. Over time, it will get much, much simpler. I promise!
Now why would you want to eat a real food diet in the first place?
Well, not only does it give you more nutrition, but it keeps you from getting so many preservatives and other chemical toxins which can have a negative effect on your health. This will keep you healthier which means less sickness, less doctor visits, and less time missing work or fun activities.
Another benefit to eating healthy is that it can save you money.
If you start making the switch to healthier, real food, over time, you’ll notice your grocery budget either stays the same or decreases. All of this will depend on the foods your buying and how you prepare meals.
17 Tips To Help You Afford Real Food
Below are some other ways to help make you be able to afford eating real food, especially if you’re on a budget. These are all things that I’ve done and mostly still do, and believe it or not… they make a big difference!
- Stock up on pantry staples and make foods from scratch rather then buying prepackaged, convenience health foods
- Decrease your budget in other areas so you can increase your food budget
- Plan meals and don’t impulse buy without a list
- Take advantage of cheap meals like beans, soups, and pasta dishes
- Keep track of food inventory and plan meals around it – example: produce, pantry items, freezer items
- Double and freeze recipes
- Buy in bulk through co-ops and food shares
- Shop store sales or use coupons
- Shop the farmers market 1-2 hours before closing for last minute deals
- Buy in season produce or shop at pick-your-own farms
- Substitute expensive foods for cheaper versions like using beef instead of lamb
- Cut back on meat by eating more beans and veggies
- Substitute drinks like juice for water
- Search out cheaper sources of raw milk via local farmers or cow-shares
- Save food scraps to make stock – veggie scraps, chicken/beef bones
- Don’t trash leftover food. Instead compost it or use what didn’t get eaten as a part of another meal
- Grow your own foods – veggies and chickens are easy starts
I know this is a lot, but it really can help. And just like I said last week… take one step at a time. You don’t have to do it all overnight. Pick one of the above areas and go with it. Once you’ve gotten into a good routine with it, move on to another area. Over time your real food lifestyle will take shape and develop and your budget will balance out.
Don’t forget to check out these real food resources to help you make the switch to real food a bit easier.
If you can’t raise chickens in your area consider rabbits. The food to meat ratio is higher than other meat animals. They are quiet, easy to raise, and can easily be raised in a metro area. We have 3 does and 1 buck. you can easily breed them 3 or 4 times a year. The kits are ready for butcher around 10 weeks and that is a quick and easy process. I can easily butcher 20 rabbits in one morning.
Both rabbits and chickens eat scraps from your kitchen as well as weeds.
Hummm… good to know Joann. Thanks for sharing!
How do you butcher them ? Should’nt you also skin them and clean the insides. A short description how you do it would be helpful. Thanks
Here’s a post from The Elliot Homestead that talks about it Ivor… just know there are graphic photos.
http://theelliotthomestead.com/2013/05/harvesting-the-rabbits/
Rabbits are not kosher. I mean by the bible they are not clean meat. So i don’t think it’s a better/healthier substitute 🙁
Just putting my 2 cents in here, but I’m not sure that anyone here suggested rabbits were a “better/healthier substitute” unless I missed it. As far as them not being kosher, that’s true, but not all Christians follow kosher eating principles and that’s not something we’ll get into here as this blog isn’t about that.
Isn’t that what the blog was about ? Eating healthy on the budget? That’s why I thought I might mention that rabbits not that healthy 🙂
Thanks Ruth… I definitely appreciate your viewpoint and input, and yes, you’re right… I am talking about eating healthy, real food on a budget. All I’m saying is that not everyone would agree that rabbits are unhealthy if they’re raised in a healthy, organic matter. Even among Christians, opinions vary on whether kosher eating is necessary for non-Jewish Christians. Anyway… there are lots of things that could be talked about here… I’m not even sure how I feel about it as I’ve not studied it too much, but I’ve heard really good arguments for both sides. So again, to each his own, and we all need to come up with our own food standards whether it be meat or no meat (some Christians among others argue that too), kosher or non-kosher… these are just some guidelines that are helpful to follow.
That is a great description of butchering rabbits. The only thing really different about my butchering is my husband made a very nice stand for me. It is made from 2 X 4 lumber that makes an upside down U over a plastic barrel. The top piece of the lumber has hooks attached that I hang the rabbits from. All the the blood and waste drops into the plastic container and I simply dump it at the end of the butchering session.
After a few rabbits you can really get into the swing of it and go pretty fast.
I’m all for things that make life easier… thanks for sharing.
Yike not sure I could do this.. I have a soft heart ?.. I’ll just grow beans and vegetables. Maybe I can get really skinny.. lol ?