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| Food Guru Michael Pollan's Tips for Eating Well on the Cheap |
Submitted by:
Tip Hero 01/24/2010 5:43 PM
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Food guru and author Michael Pollan was recently on NPR's "On Point" (hosted by Tom Ashbrook) talking about "a simple manual of very simple guidelines. The simplest is just seven words: 'Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much.'"
We found the interview to be very informative (and also a little disturbing at times!), as Michael talked about how so much of the cheap, processed food we find in the U.S. is not good for us and leads to so many health problems. And health problems can be very costly -- which end up bankrupting many Americans every year.
While eating better can save you money over the long term, for anyone on a tight budget, healthy eating often comes with a higher price tag that can make it seem unrealistic. As Michael notes:
To eat healthily in this country costs more than to eat badly. Naturally when people feel under a lot of financial stress, their choices are going to be constrained.
But Michael goes on to say that you can eat well even on a tight budget by cooking. We may not all have a lot of money in the bank, but with a little effort and a few sacrifices (e.g., fewer minutes on the couch), we should be able to a little bit of time to cook:
Cooking, many people regard as a burden ... cheap food is always popular ... It does take more work. You either have to invest some more money or some more time to eat in a healthy way. But it's doable if you're willing to cook. That really is so key. You can eat really, really well on a budget if you are willing to cook.
Michael points out that doing your gardening can be a great way to cut costs on food:
If you're willing to put $70 into a home vegetable garden, you will get, this year, $600 worth of fresh produce. Organic, local, fresh, as tasty as anything you can buy.
While we're not sure if that figure is a national average, or if it's for a warm weather climate like southern California and that those living in, say, the northeast might save less, it's still a lot of savings no matter how it shakes out. (Michael also point out that seeds are in high demand and are selling out and suggests buying seeds now.)
We highly recommend listening to Michael's interview. You can listen to it here:
Michael Pollan's 'Food Rules'
We also suggest taking a look at all of the resources Michael provides links to on his blog. We're big fans of local produce and meat and supporting local farmers. In particular, we like the Eat Well Guide he linked to. To view his resources guide, click the link below.
Resources for Sustainable Eating (Michael Pollan's website) |
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