Many of us want to start eating a healthier diet, the main problem is that it is hard to eat a plant-based diet without breaking the bank. Almost everyone can relate to having a very limited food budget at one point or another. It is so much easier, and cheaper, to stock up for the month on processed foods that have a longer shelf life. We know this is not the best option on our body but it is a lot better on our wallets. Let us first look at the average food budget of men and women per week. According to the USDA’s report in March of 2015 women average $47-$57 dollars a week while men are slightly higher at $60-$70 dollars. With this number in front of us let’s look at how we can stay in that range while eating a healthier plant-based diet. The first thing to remember is to immediately take out $20 dollars a week out of your budget to dedicate to fresh fruit and vegetables. This will not only make sure that you get the best foods in your diet first but will also limit you from purchasing too much and having to throw some of it away. Not wasting any food is a key step in eating healthy while staying in this price range. New to the whole healthy eating and trying to figure out what you can get for $20 dollars a week that will keep you full? Here is a short example of what you can use your fresh fruit and vegetables budget. If you can afford it try to go for the organic fruits and vegetables. They are heathier due to their decreased exposure to pesticides.
One Bag of Kale or spinach - $5
One bag of Apples or a hand of banana (the term for multiple) -$5
Sweet potatoes or two avocados - $4
One bunch of celery -$3
One head of broccoli or cauliflower -$3
The second thing to spend a chunk of money on can be found in bulk bins and that is beans, grains, nuts and seeds. The important thing to remember here is to limit the amounts of each thing you buy. Try to limit yourself to one ounce amounts of nuts and seeds and to branch out and try new options to see what you like. This might take a few tries to figure out what you like and how much of each item to buy, remember you want to get stuff that will last you the week. There are so many options in this section but here are some good ones to start you off with.
Whole grains - $3
Raw Almonds - $3
Beans (back, kidney, lima) - $2
Quinoa or Rice (Quinoa is the Healthier option but not for everyone) - $2
You will also want to spend between $5-$7 dollars a week on different Non-dairy items like Almond, Soy, Cashew, Rice or Coconut milk. Once you find one you like you can probably just stick with that. This is not a necessity but for most of us it would be hard to cut from our diet all together but if you can then feel free to move this money to other categories. The final amount of your budget, which should be around $10 dollars maybe more depending on if you do the non-dairy option, you will want to spend on frozen fruits and veggies. Having frozen fruits and veggies allow you to not worry about having any food expire on you. Another good thing about it is that it is easy to just throw some of it in a blender and make yourself a fruit and veggie smoothie for a quick meal. There are many different types of frozen berries you can buy and are all good for you. Try switching it up and trying different combinations of fruit smoothies and figure out what you like. A great thing about these frozen berries is that they are only are $4 dollars for a bag and will more than one serving.