Tomatoes in glass jars, organic potatoes and apples, and grass-fed beef are just not in my budget. Sorry.

Right on, Andrea. I just read a very moving post by a blogger who just got her family off of SNAP benefits (http://creatingmotherhood.com/2011/11/09/food-stamp-etiquette/) –just try buying wild salmon with an EBT card and see what kind of judgement rains down on you.

I know the more affluent we are, the better able we are to be picky about what goes into our mouths. If a family skips snack food (unnecessary) processed cereal (oatmeal is great for you and cheap) drinks water and some milk, some watered down juice they may find A LOT more moolah in their budget for the changes this article suggests. That is what we do most of the time. And I figure ANY time you make a better change, ie: buy better one week(payday LOL!), eat regular food the next, have meatless meals to save money and health, it will help. The more we vote with our wallet and forks, the more attention eating better will get, farmers will HAVE to evolve. Thanks for starting the conversation all! (PS you can pop popcorn in a paper bag all by itself in the microwave….MUCH CHEAPER and healthier than stovetop or microwave.)

It takes a lot of time and effort, but if you shop around and research what farms are in your area, you can stretch to add more organic produce, meat and dairy into your family’s budget. We do not have a lot of money, believe me, but we shop at three different stores (checking the newspaper and penny savers for coupons and sales) and utilize an organic winter farmer’s market. We live near a farm and got to know the farmers. They have given us a discount on grass fed meats and organic cheeses. We don’t buy processed snacks (they are a luxury item) or soda pop and eat most of our meals at home. It sucks to be broke, it really does (we both work full time jobs, plus a part time job to make ends meet!), but with planning, you can do a lot. If you commit to a lifestyle, you can make serious changes in your life. It matters where you place your priorities.

When I am given suggestions by independent groups and not people with an agenda to push – organic farmers saying organic foods are best as an example – I’ll consider regularly reallocating my food budget. I buy what is on sale & when that works out for organic apples and meat I stock up. And when it doesn’t, I stock up on the other stuff and don’t worry about it. Do what you can with what you have and don’t let others make you feel guilty

We’re struggling too, but I think even making small changes helps…we buy 1/4 cow at a time from a local farmer (luckily easy to do here in WI)…so the beef is better, AND cheaper too…and as for organic produce…we’ve dug up our lawn…a good chunk of it…and grow our own…it’s a learning process…but the tomatoes in glass jars came from my yard, and I taught myself to can…also canned and froze quite a bit of applesauce…came from an organic orchard…picked the apples and processed myself…lotta work but big savings and better for us.

I don’t think this is a ‘slap in the face’ at all, I think this is useful and valuable information. Apples and potatoes are loaded with pesticides, so it makes sense either to buy them either organic or from sources close to you that you know, or don’t buy them (a step which ultimately saves you money) and get your vitamins from other fruits and vegetables. At our local store, Pomi (the boxed brand of canned tomatoes) is fairly comparable to most canned tomato varieties of the same size, coming in at about 20 to 50 cents more. And you don’t need to buy organic milk- just look at the label to see if the farm or farmer’s consortium has pledged not to use rGBH, BST, or BGH. Many milk companies state that right on their cartons, and they aren’t the expensive kind (and btw, most milk contains a lot of hormones because they’re milking pregnant cows, so if you want to cut down on your exposure buy low-fat or nonfat milk, since the hormones hang out in the fat). There are other fish to buy instead of salmon (which, even farmed, can be expensive anyway) that also have good benefits and aren’t as laden with pesticides and chemicals. And as for beef, there’s something to be said for saving up for the good stuff rather than eating the cheap crap, and we’re supposed to eat less red meat anyway. So thank you, Stephanie! Some of this stuff I already knew, but some of it is a surprise to me, and I’m definitely glad I read this article.

Dude, who is judging you?? Nobody up here said anyone who couldn’t do these things was a “bad mom.” People are giving examples of things you CAN do. Some of them are more time-intensive, some less. Do them or don’t do them. But don’t complain about being judged here because I just re-read all of the comments, as well as Stephanie’s post, and there is no judgment. Only ideas, which are good.

And like I said about the milk, just Look At The Label. Heck, Krogers, Safeway, and Walmart all banned rBGH milk from their shelves, so even their own brand of milk won’t have it. Don’t have one of these supermarkets in your area? Ask your local store manager if they have thought about banning the hormone from their store brand milk. That act doesn’t cost any money and takes little time to do, and if enough people do it, the store (depending on its size) will probably do what the customers want.

Absolutely did not mean for it to be inflammatory. Was just basing it off the original article of 7 Foods You Should Never Eat. I found it — and still find it — very informative.

Steph

Let’s not talk about the cost of this for one moment…let’s talk about time. One full time workig parent. One part-time workig parent. Two kids 3 and under. AVG time in the grocery store for REGULAR weekday shoppig with kids: over an hour. AVG TIME when I’m paying attention to my budget and taking time pay attention to every price adn whether it will put me over budget: 2 hrs. AVG TIME my 2 yr and 8 month old is willig to ist in cart (assumign I bribe him with food): 45 min. MAX.

Now, you are telling me that to truly get this right, I hvae to research things and then spend even MORE time in the store. Yeah….b/c I have nothing but time. This article really irritates me. Maybe it’s the tone…..

It happens to be I live in Israel, adn almost all food is locally produced within our tiny borders. So with the exception of the Salmon…….I know very little is being packaged and sent from overseas (you can only get SEASONAL fruits and veggies here…oranges, avocados, strawberries are NOT year round fruits).
Dairy products are also produced locally. that doesn’t mean they don’t use hormones….it just means it’s all local. more and more stores have huge organic sections…so i supposed I could just blindly close my eyes to the prices and buy everythin in the organic sections….but still…..to truly know that you are getting organic etc etc…you really do have to do your research. Throw in the language barrier (yes, we speak the language here, but it still takes longer to decipher it than if it were in english)….and I just feel like this article is screaming BAD MOM! Plus…..interestingly enough…at least three of the foods on your list are considered staples on the Weight Watchers must buy list.

I enjoy reading blogs here…but i think the problem comes in that these pieces are not penned by experts and there is no editor fact checking and providing feedback (‘m a journalist and I don’t think any newspaper could get away with a piece like this without some better evidence and expert back-up).

Here we have a collection of know-it-alls, indignant whiners who will take any opportunity to feel insulted, and hapless people who find grocery shopping difficult. What a mess! It’s a blog post people, take from it what you will and move on. Nobody’s trying to insult you. And if going grocery shopping is some big earth shattering problem for you, you’re either feeble minded or you’re doing it wrong.

These aren’t “foods that science experts claim you shouldn’t eat.” These are foods that a person has decided not to eat. Even if it were a single scientist, that doesn’t mean that “experts claim you shouldn’t eat” it, and these aren’t even all scientists–Rick North, for instance, isn’t a scientist or even somebody with a science degree.

There are reasons to minimize use of some foods, but if you’re going to do it based on a scientific approach, use an actual scientific approach. It’s actually not a good idea to be willing to change your diet habit based on a random statement from one individual. That’s why science doesn’t work that way, and neither should we.

Wonderful information, thank you!!