
You want to eat organic, but the cost makes you think twice.
It happens to all of us.
We go to the grocery store with the best of intentions to
buy all organic, buy tons of fruits and veggies. We remind ourselves, “it’s for
our health,” and go running head and hands first into the organic bins. We grab
the thin plastic bags, which are sometimes green for organic produce, and fill
them up with our feel good, organic fruits and veggies.
The colors start to affect us. The orangey oranges of
carrots, grassy deep green kales, royal purples of eggplant and purple cabbage.
The sight of berries—deep scarlet red strawberries, royal violet blueberries
and blackberries, and blushing raspberries, intoxicates us. And before we know
it, we have a cart full of the rainbow (score!) and we are walking with our
head held high, floating above the cart, to the checkout.

Our first time we thought nothing of it. We were thinking
about our health and eating right. But soon enough that changes.
Organic foods are expensive. That rainbow cart of yummy
organics will surely cost upwards of a modest weekly food bill, and you haven’t
even added the weekly staples. The grains, mock or real meats, alternative milks,
juices, etc., etc., etc.
I’ve been there. I’ve done that. And, I’ve also been the
dreaded customer with shopper’s remorse, asking the cashier apologetically,
“Wait, can you tell me which one was most expensive? Can I put that, that, and
sometimes that too, back?” I apologize and even take back my own ‘go-backs’ to
show my sincerity.
There must be a better, cheaper way.

I have memories of standing next to my Granma’s hip, with my
fingers on the edge of the sink, waiting for her to finish washing a piece of
fruit. She’d fill the sink up with cold, soapy water, add a cap full of bleach
(I know, she added it to our bathwater too.) and hand-scrub our produce. After
that, she’d rinse them well, pat them dry, and then set them in a large bowl on
the kitchen table for grabbing and eating.
Granma was on to something. We can never be too cautious of
the food we put into our bodies. It must be clean and as close to nature as
intended.
There is a better way. A cheaper way to buy organic, and eat
locally grown produce without spending an entire week’s budget of food money.
We recently bought a juicer to aid our goals of eating
healthier—more plant-based/vegan and raw foods. We spend roughly $700 a month
on food for our family of four. That includes E’s lunch at work; me and the
kid’s breakfast, lunch, and dinner because we homeschool we are always eating
at home, and our family’s fun ‘housearaunt’ meals—we never eat-out. Ever. Not
even when we travel.
Juicing surely means eating more fruits and veggies, which
also means buying more, and buying organic for juicing. Our food budget can’t
stretch more, so I have put together our own action plan to eat healthy and
organic for fairly cheap.
Here’s my plan:
- Buy
organic, but buy smart.
- Grow
the most expensive fruits and vegetables we eat, and those we eat the most of.
- Planning
ahead, and setting realistic goals.
Let’s break it down.
Buy organic, but buy smart!
First things first? Know what to buy organic, and what you
can buy conventionally.
Here is a list of the ‘Dirty Dozen’ from EWG.org. These are
fruits and vegetables their studies show have the most pesticide contaminants
(even after being peeled or washed).
- Apples
- Celery
- Sweet
Bell Peppers
- Peaches
- Strawberries
- Nectarines
(Imported)
- Grapes
- Spinach
- Lettuce
- Cucumbers
- Blueberries
(Domestic)
- Potatoes
- *
Green Beans
- *
Kale/Greens
*Note: According to EWG, these two may have pesticides of
special concern, which need to be avoided.
These apples are not organic, you can tell by the shiny, waxy sheen that makes them shine beneath the supermarket lights
These sweet, red bell peppers are also not organic and are shiny with wax and other coatings.
These fruits are organic. Notice they don't shine and glisten as the other, non-organic apples and peppers? That's a good thing!
Here is a list of the ‘Clean 15’. These fruits and
vegetables have the lowest occurring pesticides (peeled and washed when
appropriate).
- Onions
- Sweet
Corn
- Pineapples
- Avocado
- Cabbage
- Sweet
Peas
- Asparagus
- Mangoes
- Eggplant
- Kiwi
- Cantaloupe
(Domestic)
- Sweet
Potatoes
- Grapefruit
- Watermelon
- Mushrooms
The peels on bananas protect them from pesticides. Peel, and eat!
Watermelons also have thick skins/rinds that protect the fruit fruit from harmful pesticides and contaminants.
Both of these lists are in order, top down, from the dirtiest
to the cleanest, and from the cleanest to the dirtiest, respectively. Use this
list as a guide when you must choose between organic and non-organic.
Grow your own organic foods.
Herbs, Salad Greens, and vegetable plants for sale at a farmer's market
By far, the best and cheapest way to eat better and save
money while doing it is to grow it yourself. We started our garden back in ’05
and every year it expands. Here’s why: during the summer we literally eat out
of the garden. A good 60% of our meals comes from our garden in the summer, and
I find we only buy pantry staples like grains, beans, alternative milks, etc.
We grow the things we eat a lot of that also grows well in our area. This way
nothing grown goes to waste, and we never waste our space or energy growing
foods that will not grow and sustain us.
Despite what most people believe, you do not need a large
acre or even a backyard to grow your own food. Strawberries, blueberries,
tomatoes, peppers, herbs, salad greens, and a ton of other foods can be grown
in containers on a sunny patio. You can also get a number of fruit trees as
dwarfs to save space, but still produce enough produce for your family.
Take survey of your available space, do some research, and
start growing your own. You don’t have to start big. We didn’t. But start
somewhere. Start growing something you can eat.
A variety of salad greens growing in my winter garden.
Garden Salad: A variety of lettuces, parsley (curled and flat leaf), chives, and cilantro. Picked fresh, washed, and eaten within a couple of hours.
Tip: Grow foods from
the dirty list, if you can. Those foods that you should eat organic, but have a
hard time affording or finding—try to grow them yourself. Strawberries are a
perfect container plant and are easy to grow! So are peppers, which in some
locations can grow year round. (I still have sweet pepper plants in my garden
that were planted last spring!)
When you grow your food, it is similar to cooking your own
food—you are in control. It is cheaper to raise an organic vegetable garden
then one filled with hormones, pesticides, and the likes. Instead of buying
Mircle Gro, Round-up, and other non-organic things for my garden, I implement
cheaper (and sometimes free) practices to ensure our garden grows well. I spend
more money on plants, making our soil healthy, and buying quality, organic
fertilizers that nourish our plants.
Here’s a quick tip: If your soil and
plants are stronger and healthier, they are less likely to fall prey to pests
and disease. That doesn’t mean you won’t have to deal with pests and diseases,
just maybe fewer. So invest in your soil and plant/seed quality.
Plan ahead and keep it real.
Here comes the real work. The best way to shave money off of
your grocery bill, in general, is to plan ahead and be honest with yourself.
Often times I have thought of a thousand meals I want to make in the upcoming
week, bought all the stuff, gotten it all home only to realize 1) I don’t have
room to store it all, 2) Now I have to cook/use it all, and 3) There are only
seven days in a week.
This is where being honest and practical helps. If you know
you have a busy week ahead, then don’t plan elaborate meals that take a lot of
work, prep, and time. Also, think about the real number of meals you need to
cook for the week (or want to cook), and leave some room for fun, quick meals.
We don’t eat out or order-in, but a few nights out of the week the kids and us
want pizza, burgers, quesadillas, or something fun. Leave budget space and time
in your planning to have these fun meals so that no one feels deprived.
Also, do not go food-shopping
hungry, when you are in a rush, or when you have no clue what you will make for
the upcoming week. It’ll just end in food budget disaster. Trust me on this one.
Make a list, even if it’s in your mind, and have some idea of what you
want/need to buy for the upcoming week. Plan and prioritize your meals and
shopping, so that you can make the most of your money, and get your shopping
down quickly, and painlessly.
Confession: I love
grocery shopping. I look forward to it. We do it as a family and often have
lots of fun, though by the third store the kids are asking every five minutes,
“How many more stores?” Even if there is none, or it is late at night, E and me
always tell them 2-3. Just to hear them sigh. Of course if they know Target is
on our list, they perk right up.
In addition to knowing what to buy organic or
conventional, here are six tips to buy your produce more economically.



Six Tips on Buying Produce Cheaply
Tip #1: Shop the farmer’s market and/or join your local food
co-op. I know farmer’s markets are the cool, hipster, sexy foodie trend. But
there is a good reason—when you shop the farmer’s market a few things happen:
- You
eat seasonally, which is better for your health.
- Your
food travels less distance, so it is fresher, your carbon footprint is smaller,
it needs less waxing and other things to ‘preserve’ it since it isn’t traveling
to another country, and it is cheaper—for everybody!
- You
can talk to the grower about the produce and ask questions. When was it picked,
is it organic, how to store it, what does it taste like (they love to give away
samples—trust me), best ways of preparing it, how long will it keep, is it ripe
or when will it ripen. The list of valuable things you can ask and learn about your
food is long. And isn’t there something magical about speaking to the person
who grew your food? I think so.
- You
support your local farmer and local community. Mom & Pop businesses are the
backbone of our countries’ financial system, and so investing in and supporting
our local growers does wonders for our own community and country’s financial
health.
- You
feel better about what you’re eating, how much you’re spending, and who you’re
giving your money to.
Tip #2: When you shop the grocery stores, buy local-grown
(often there will be signs up or ask your produce guy/gal), and buy what’s in
season. I know strawberries in the middle of December sounds amazing, but
unless you’re in South America, those berries had to travel quite a few
thousand miles to reach you. Why not try local-grown apples? Seasonal fruits
and veggies are often better quality and cheaper.

Berries at our local farmer's market, grown in California.
Tip #3: Plan ahead and shop what’s on sale. Grab the ads of
a few different stores, compare your options, and then choose accordingly.
Tip #4: Shop around. I never shop at one place. We eat a lot
of alternative, vegan foods, which means everything cannot often be found
beneath one roof. Sure, our Sundays are filled with grocery store hopping, but
we often find better deals this way. I buy produce from our local farmer’s
markets, the health food store, Sprouts (our Whole Foods), Trader Joes, and our
local Ralph’s, Fresh N’ Easy, Win-Co, Target, Costco or Food 4 Less. Yeap, we get
around.
Tip #5: Costco, Target, Wal-Mart—they all have their place
in your grocery shopping. Do a little research and/or window shopping to see
what your local big box shops have to offer. We shop a lot at Costco. From
printing paper to pineapples. We also have a Super Target and Super Wal-Mart
near us that we shop at often. They have great food prices on pantry staples
(even good, vegan stuff) that we often buy during the month and will often have
great deals on produce too.
Tip #6: Don’t be afraid to buy frozen. I rarely buy canned
foods (except for tomato paste, sauce, or stewed tomatoes), but we do buy
frozen, organic vegetables and fruits. So you want strawberries and it’s the
middle of winter? Buy them organic and frozen. The great thing about buying
frozen fruits and vegetables are that they are frozen at the peak of freshness,
just hours after harvest. Sure, some vitamins and minerals are lost, but eating
them is better than not eating them and if frozen helps, then go for it. We
keep a Costco pack of organic, mixed vegetables in the freezer so that no
matter what, we can put vegetables on the dinner table every night. We also
keep frozen fruits for smoothies and baking.

Citrus grown a couple miles from our home. We live in a citrus growing belt!
So let’s sum it up:
- Buy
organic, but be smart about it: 1. Choose your organic battles wisely, 2. Grow
what you can, and, 3. Plan ahead when shopping.
- When
in doubt, either ask the produce guy/gal, or buy organic.
- Wash
your fruits and vegetables well. Get some veggie wash, a scrub brush, and a
salad spinner to make sure you wash all things you consume fresh.
- Never
decide eating no vegetables is better than eating conventionally grown produce.
If you cannot buy organic, or it is not available to you—don’t fret, do what
you can, wash everything well, shop the clean list, and promise yourself that
you’ll do better as soon as you can. Eat
your fruits and veggies no matter what.
- Buy
what you know you’ll eat in a few days/week. I know it all looks amazing, but
one way to save money (which happens to ensure you are always eating fresh
produce) is to buy your produce often. Don’t try to stock up, unless it is
something known to store well. Instead, pace yourself, plan ahead, and buy what
you know you and your family can consume.
- Consider
buying other foods organically. I don’t buy everything organic, but there are
other things that should be eaten organically, such as: milk (dairy or
alternative), eggs, meats, and mock meats, grains. Do your research and make
sure you are equally informed about what goes into your other foods. Especially
if you eat animal products (milk, eggs, cheese, meat).
- Have
fun and experiment. Eat to live, do not live to eat. But most of all make sure
that eating and shopping for your food is something you enjoy. You are
nurturing and caring for your body and those you love. Do it with love and good
intentions in your heart. Health is wealth!
It is my hope that I have armed you with some great tips and
tricks to eat a clean, organic, healthy diet on a budget. It will surely take
work, but it is most worth it. We do not have control over what genes we have
inherited, and some of the health ills we have or will be dealt during our
lifetime. But, we do have the power to control what we eat and that may be the
biggest, most revolutionary thing we can do for our own health and wellness.
Take control of your body—it is yours for this lifetime.
Treat it well and it will thank you with a wonderful life. Your wonderful life.
Your wonderful life begins and ends with everything you eat.
Peace, love & blessings!
Ki