I recently watched Food, Inc. Wow. More on that later (lots more), but suffice it to say I’m making a few changes to my standard of frugality. This includes an experiment. Yes, eating fresh, local food is more expensive. But, I wonder if we cut out all the “empty” foods we buy, if we could manage to include lots of organic, local food, meat from local farmers, etc. So this month I’m conducting this experiment. We usually spend $200/month on groceries, and while I know that will be busted, I’m curious by just how much.
My first three “frugal” fresh purchases?
1. Grass-Fed Organic Beef on sale for $3.99/lb. today only at Whole Foods.
2. Fresh-caught wild Alaskan Salmon on sale for $6.99/lb. this wknd only at Thriftway.
3. A few free-range chickens ($2.85/lb.) grown locally in Mulino from the family-run Deo Volente Farm.
So my question is, is it possible to eat fresh, local, organic food without breaking the bank? I honestly don’t know the answer, but it’ll be fun to find out.
*Your turn: Please share your frugal tips for supporting local farmers, buying organic and seasonal? I know some of you out there are experts, so please share the wisdom!
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8 thoughts on “Frugal Fridays: Grass-fed Frugal”
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We watched that documentary about a year ago and too have been making changes ever since! Its a must! Our budget was $150 every two weeks. While it has increased quite a bit, we as a family can feel and taste the difference significantly. Significantly enough to justify the price increase. We always get our meat from the farmer’s market now. I know Costco sells 3 lbs of grass fed organic beef for about $15. The chickens I haven’t been able to find any cheaper than yours. I have a favorite farm here in Corvallis for our pork needs. It has been a fun journey!
Well, if you live somewhere with a little bit of land, maybe the best way to eat good food is to grow/produce it yourself! Plant a (big) garden, buy a few chickens for eggs, buy and feed a baby pig (they can eat a lot of the things that we throw in the trash!) so that it can grow big and fat and then fill your freezer with tons of pork! Consider raising a cow or goat for some milk or beef. Buy produce from local farms when it’s cheap (cheaper when YOU actually go pick it), and learn to can it, so that you can avoid buying processed fruits & veggies in the winter. Maybe you even consider hunting or fishing a bit so you can supplement your protein intake with some elk, venison, or fish. America, get off your couches and away from your TVs and start working to feed yourself, rather than relying on corporate food processors to stuff your tummies with God-only-knows what kinds of foods.
Two good resources for conversations about the food: (1) a book called The End of Overeating by David A. Kessler (This book does a great job analyzing the impact the food industry has on our eating habits), and (2) http://newlifeonahomestead.com/ (This website is about a family’s quest to become self sustaining. Great posts about making everyday foods and household items from scratch, as well as gardening tips and tricks).
I actually gasped when I saw that your budget was $200/month. But then we’ve been doing the organic thing for a couple years and suffice it to say, I hope you can continue! One thing that helped us is that we found an organic company that we buy all our meats and veggies/fruits (frozen). It does require an extra freezer as it’s an every 6 month delivery but it has significantly helped us stay healthy while not busting the bank. Surely if this kind of program is running down here in the deep south, there is some kind of that in the Green NW! We even get our cleaning supplies through them! Now here’s the crazy part….guess where most our fruits and veggies are from? Stahlbush Farms in Corvallis, OR!!!! CRAZINESS! Just made us so happy and feel like you can take the two out of Oregon, but can’t take the Oregon out of the two of us! 🙂 For some good reads on this…..read Kingsolver’s “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle” or “Omnivore’s Dilemma”. You’ll never go back! Blessings on the search…
We got a CSA this year, it has been wonderful. We look foward to Tuesdays like Christmas!! The kids always wonder what is going to be in the box this week. It is from a local farm which we were able to visit and tour so we could see just where our fruits and veggies are coming from. It was intially a little expensive but it averages to what we would normally spend. We think it was a great investment!
Kari, I love this! I wish we had more options here in California. But, you know, I’m sure there options, I just have to look for them.
Alicia and Tyler Jones sell grass-fed chickens on their farm, Afton Field Farm. I know they raise and sell pigs, too. We bought one of their chickens once and brought it back to California with us. It was amazing! And it was a good way of supporting a local, organic farm, while supporting our friends, too.
I think I need to go watch Food Inc. now…
I follow a great blog: saving4myfamily.blogspot.com
They post coupon match ups and deals for the “organic lifestyle.” There really are a lot of organic deals out there. We too spend a little more to eat good, about $400 to $450 a month, which includes all household items as well. I plan to buy 1/4 of a beef in the next month or so, from my sister’s friend who raises them organically in Central Oregon, for about $2.99 per pound, cut just how I want it. Still I am working on a good chicken source though. I may look into your idea that you wrote about above.
Good luck! I think you’ll find that locally grown, often organic, always tastes soooo much better and it feels good to know we’re supporting our local economy. You won’t go back!
How do you feed 2 adults and 2 kids on $200 a month? Brandon and I have a budget, keep track of everything, try to eat healthy, have our own garden and hardly ever buy meat. It is just the two of us and we spend more than that on groceries every month. I love your posts they are motivating and challenging. We will have to watch Food Inc.
Our budget is also about $200 a month for a family of four. I am afraid to watch Food Inc. 🙂 I am not sure I’m ready to have to make changes. ha! We already prefer whole foods and avoid processed. One thing that helps our budget this most is eating less meat in general (putting less meat in each dish than required rather than going totally vegetarian). But it still is a large chunk of our budget. Switching to local meat would be a process Thankfully I have a large freezer already!