How to Afford Healty Food on a Salary of Less than 30,000 a year!!

I am doing the healthy diet and exercising at home.  But It seems people criticize because I can not eat healthy enough.  I can only afford frozen chicken(dark meat its cheaper) canned tuna, frozen vegetables.  Last time I went shopping and 4 packages of yogurt were about 8 dollars, cottage chz. almost 3 dollars. I buy frozen Strawberries because a little box of fresh strawberries is almost 10 dollars.  A vine tomato 2 dollars each.  Not talk about Organic or without preservatives.  Is everybody here rich or can you give me tips on how to eat healthy cheap. 

By the way I live In a bulding so I can grow anything and in Puerto Rico there are no farmers markets, nothing is grown locally.

I will Appreciate any advice and tips on how to save money and eat healthy.

Bea

i know what you mean, im having trouble with it myself. i've been living mostly off of vitamins, cottage cheese, and yogurt(both being the non-fat store brand). if you're really into it you can look online and through papers for coupons and save a bundle, you can also look for whatever fresh produce is in season for your area. i'm loving that strawberries are finally inseason here.

First of all, many people (myself included) don't make anything close to 30k, so I hope you are counting your blessings!  That said, I know it can be tough.

Frozen foods are fine, but the less processed ones (such as fruits and veggies) are normally much healthier and more economical than pre-packaged meals.

Some canned foods are also healthy; just check the label to make sure that everything (especially sodium, which can be high in canned items) is in order.

Bulk goods like grains (rice, corn grits/polenta, wheatberries, couscous) and legumes (lentils and beans) can be very, very inexpensive and healthful.  Meat is almost always cheaper if you are willing to learn some simple butchering skills, buy larger cuts, and freeze them. 

darkylinky:

Thanks for the advise, but my problem is in Puerto Rico there is no local produce, everything, and I mean everything is imported. Only coffee and sometimes mangos and pineapples, but we dont porduce any food.

I go to Costco with my syster our bill was 700 dollars so about 350 each and there was mostly canned and frozen foods, only fresh one large bag of tomatoes and a bag of spinash for 15 dollars and its so big it only last about a week and lots of it spoils.

I really dont know how people can mantain the healthy eating.

I can of understand why so many people are overweight, its cheaper to eat junk.

Bea

Eating healthy is a challenge in and of itself and trying to do it on a budget.....hard but not impossible.  Though your situation is obviously unique I am sure there are ways.  Like can you grow some veggies?  When I live in an apt I had a container garden and grew lettuce, tomatoes and zucchini and spices.  And one year strawberries, they were small but the best I ever had.  Also look for meat substitutes when u can't buy white meat or to make it go farther.  I personally like T.V.P textured vegetable protein, like tofu it takes on the flavor of whatever u are making but cooked it has the texture of ground beef. (raw it looks like a bag of white grape nuts).  Here its $3 for a bag that last me about 2 months, very little is one serving and it quadruples is size when cooked.

I also love coupons.  I have a personal rule, if its not on sale or I don't have a coupon for it I don't buy it.  Also don't forget about storing stuff properly so u don't waste it.  I personally like the debbie Myers green bags for produce, they really work as advertised.  or using Ur spinach as an example when u get home cook and freeze a little more then what usually end up pitching.

I also save grocery money others ways. I focus on cleaning products.  I actually make my own using water, alcohol, white vinegar, lemons, baking soda, bleach and ammonia. (never mix bleach and ammonia the fumes will kill you) There are some great web sites with different 'recipes', I don't follow them anymore I just pour til it looks about right and my products work better then the ones i used to buy and are MUCH cheaper, not to mention better for the environment.  I also cut my liquid fabric softener with the vinegar, makes it last longer (there is no smell after the cloths are dried).  U can actually use straight vinegar instead but I am a sucker for the sents.  If I use dryer sheets I cut them in half so I get 120 from a box of 60.  If you have hard water add baking soda to Ur wash load and use less soap.  Shampoo and conditioner I only buy onsale and with a coupon.  If I travel anywhere I grab from the hotels. 

I know this sounds weird, but i'd rather spend $3 on milk then glass cleaner.

pamm915

thanks for the advise, I have not thought about the price of cleaners etc.  I could save some money in that, but I don't buy as much at most ones a month, food I have to buy every week.  I am not knowledgeable in tofu or how to prepare but I will, check out, even though anything that has tofu or made with soy is very expensive, I was looking at a little box of edamame and it was not even 6oz and it was about 6 dollars for something I can eat as a snack.

Talking about snacks anybody have any ideas for cheap snacks, box special K protein bars is 8 dollars for 6 bars last 3 days, and 6 dollars for Special K protein water 5.50 for 4 packs!!  I need help with this, how can you make yogurt at home maybe this a cheap way to get my yogurt activia light is very expensive and I eat about 2 to 4 of them daily. 

I appreciate your advice and that you took the time to write to help me.

BEa

I don't think there is anything wrong with frozen veggies and fruits. If anything I think it's a better choice then something that has been imported from half way around the world since they are frozen after they ripe on the vines instead of in transit.

Also what kind of yogurt are you buying? Seems like you are going for expensive and over hyped variety in small containers. I usually buy "regular" none fat one sold in big containers. Much cheaper per serving then those tiny individual serving cups.

Speaking of over hyped and over marketed stuff ditch the bars, and the protein water. Go for regular food, it's healthier and cheaper.

UD

Frozen fruit and vegetables are fine.  They're frozen as soon as they're picked so they have more nutritional value than "fresh" produce that's travelled thousands of miles to your grocery store.

Do you have access to beans, lentils, oats, brown rice and other whole grains (buckwheat, quinoa, that sort of thing)?  They can be quite inexpensive (buy the dried kind not the cans) and are full of nutrition.  Nuts and dried fruit are also pretty healthy; just make sure you watch the serving sizes as they're pretty high calorie so easy to have too much of if you don't pay attention.

I agree it is very expensive to eat healthy. I spend $300 a month just for 3 of us and some might think thats a lot but it really isn't. I shop at aldi for most of the items and what I can not get there I get at walmart. We eat what we always normally ate like spaghetti, chili, hamburgers, some kind of meal made with chicken....but we eat just servings and always have a salad ( lettuce tomato and carrot and onon) with regular dressing (italian 109 cal for 2 tablespoons). The only extra that I buy is yogurt for my husband, snack cakes for my son ( he can eat anything not gain a ounce) and cottage cheese for me. If I or my husband graves a sweet I always have vanilla wafers or graham crackers on hand, I have lost 22 pounds since I started may 11th and husband 12 pounds since June 11th. It is hard to eat healthy and even though we eat alot of normal stuff that we had before we started on our "diet" we eat a lot less. I gave up regular pop which was a lot of the weight gain problem.And we can not afford a gym membership or even a exercise equipment for home so we do our own exercise.I am on 4 insulin shots a day and since eating this way I have had to decrease my insulin.Well thats my thought on the subject sorry for babbling.

I disagree with the notion that healthy eating has to be expensive, you just need to know what to buy and how to cook. I'm a student on a budget and I eat a very healthy, varied diet. I cook a lot from scratch - that really brings the price down.

- eat frozen fruits and veges, that's fine, plus

- carbs: wholegrain bread, brown rice, oatmeal, noodles, pasta, potatoes, pumpkin, sweet potato, plantain, root vegetables, barley

- protein: tofu, lentils, split peas, chickpeas, beans, chicken, canned fish (tuna, sardines and mackerel are usually cheaper), eggs. Buy tougher, cheaper cuts of red meat and braise them.

Stop buying expensive yoghurt and buy plain; stop buying bars and protein water and boil a couple of eggs for protein, drink a glass of milk or eat a banana as a snack. Don't buy things you can make yourself (eg pizza bases, pasta sauce, salad dressings); buy things in bulk or on sale. Cook in bulk too and freeze the leftovers for another night. Eating well has become such a habit for me that I'm always shocked at the prices of unhealthy food; spending money on burgers, frozen meals or snacks always seems such a waste.

A couple ideas are eggs, brown rice, pasta, beans, and bananas.

I do make my food from scrath except pasta, as far as the sauces I make myself. I also make my own vegatable soup. I do make homemade noodles. We eat tuna,salmon,I buy italian dressing and to strecth it I will splt it (add half to a empty bottle) and add vinegar and a bit olive oil and a bit water and use that as dressing. You are making for one Merylwhite, I am making for 3 so it would be cheaper for you. The more in the family the more expensive it gets. As far as plantain, tofu I don't bother with it no one in the family likes it. But even frozen fruits and frozen vegetables are not that cheap. The meat prices are not to bad mostly the produce.When a family does not have a lot of money to work with thats when you notice the high prices of food, and every month they seem to get higher.

I am a big fan of eggs.  I eat at least one hard boiled egg almost every day.  I also like to buy meats in big packages and freeze individual portions seperately so that i can just defrost what i need.  Canned beans and veggies can be used in a ton of different ways. You can also buy cheese in bulk and freeze it.  

I used to be a big coupon/sale shopper.  It was always a game to see how much stuff I could get for the lowest total amount.  If you see good sales and you know you can use it or store it before it goes bad, take advantage.  You may spend more one week, but less the next.  I am all about experimenting with different combinations of food and trying to figure out what is good together.  

good luck!

Hmm I'm not sure how I can help but what helps me keep the cost down is to make a concise list of what I need to buy and then when I'm at the store, balance the cost and nutrition as much as I can... I gotta tell you though, $10 for a box of strawberries is so much. ): I sympathize with you.

I agree with cherry... a list of what is needed will really help.  Our problem is that food was going bad and not getting used because I bought what looked good and what was on sale. I'm supporting a family of 4 (that's including 2 kids in diapers and one on formula) and putting my husband through school on right around $30k/year.

Now when the ad comes out for the week, I look it over and compare it with my list of cheap healthy meals and go with it that way.  I buy only whatever fruit is inexpensive and on sale.  The only veggies I will buy at costco is their 10 lb bag of carrots, that lasts me about 2 weeks.  Otherwise stuff goes bad, so I buy it at the regular store and only enough that will last me for the week.  I make a plan for what meals will be on which days and I cook enough oftentimes for two meals which helps a lot.

I don't always get the cheapest price per unit but I end up spending a lot less because food hasn't been going bad.  Pre-planning the week's worth of meals has been so great because it cuts out buying the things I don't need.  Now I know I buy 3 different kinds of fresh veggies, 3 different kinds of fresh fruit, whatever is needed for dinners, and then any of the basics like bread, cheese, etc.  That gets me pretty much anything I need and has cut our grocery bill quite a bit.  We're getting fresh fruits and veggies and a minimal amount of processed food.  I realize your prices on fresh fruits & veggies are a lot more expensive than what I can get here so get what you can.  If this means eating a lot of frozen veggies, so be it.  Canned?  So be it.  Do what you can.

Cooking from scratch is important also and forget the idea of fancy packaged stuff like protein water and activa yogurts.  That's all a marketing ploy.  Think - eat the way God intended. 

And my thing is, cheap proteins.  I'm also allergic to soy so that limits me.  I buy frozen chicken breast, cottage cheese (for the hubby), eggs, I make hummus from garbanzo beans, and we eat a lot of pinto beans in things like chili or burritos.  We do buy ground beef when it's on sale for under $2/lb and I make burgers or single-serve meatloaf or something.  Canned fish is awesome. 

Keeping in mind I'm a working mother so my time is so limited.  Next year when I'll be able to stay-home I can go back to doing things that save even more money like baking our bread, cooking more from scratch, etc.  But for now, we do what we can.

Coupons, coupons, coupons.

I don't know about Puerto Rico, but shop sales if you can. BOGO deals are the best, because usually you can buy 1 at half price.

Also don't feel bad about frozen vegetables.  Often, they have more  nutrients in them than fresh, because they are flash frozen at the peak of freshness, which preserves the nutrition.  Unless you have  a farmers market, and know the produce you are getting is recently harvested, there's virtually no advantage to fresh vs. frozen.

I give myself about $50 bucks a week to work off of. The first thing I did was when i went shopping I wrote down what everything cost so the next week I could plan a bit better for what I could and couldn't afford.

Roma tomatoes are the best way to go in my opinion. Probably the cheapest tomato available. Who cares if it wasn't grown on the vine? As for the fruit, I like to buy frozen fruit as opposed to fresh most of the time. Once you thaw it out its all the same. A bag of frozen strawberries at walmart costs like $1.94. Instead of salad bags I buy heads of lettuce. Two heads of lettuce costs the same as one salad bag and the salad bags go ronchy too fast.

Brown rice is pretty cheap and fills you up...so do beans. Eggs are cheap. As for the chicken, I bought a bag of frozen chicken breast for like $7 recently. Its never going to be cheap unfortunately. Almost all of my vegetables are frozen too, save bell peppers, squash etc.

Just always stock up when something is on sale and also, use coupons whenever you can. They really do help

The cheapest, healthiest food is always the food that is home-grown and seasonal....   That's the place to start and it doesn't mean farmer's markets, just checking out the 'country of origin' and eating what the locals eat.  If it's the season for chayotes and plantains in Puerto Rico (I don't know), eat chayotes and plantains.   If the strawberries have been grown in a hot-house and flown in from far away, they'll be more expensive than something produced nearer by.   Doesn't mean your diet is always drop-dead interesting and you might find you're eating the same things quite freqently but, when you're on a budget, that's what you have to do. 

Basic dried foods/canned are always good value... pasta, rice, noodles, grains, tomatoes...   Dried beans cost a fraction of canned ones.  Buy dried foods on special offer and keep them until you need them.  Eggs and cheese are good things to have around. 

Make your own food rather than buying ready-made foods.... The cost of employing a factory to prepare your food is a luxury!   Instead of Special K bars, eat a banana perhaps or have a slice of bread and butter.  TIP..... Herbs and spices can turn very basic, boring ingredients into something much more exciting - invest in a few because they last a long time.  

Finally... there are cheaper cuts of meat.  The stewing cuts of beef are unpopular because they take longer too cook but they are very cheap and tasty.   Offals... liver, kidneys, heart etc.... is another cheap way to get good quality protein.

Good luck

Hi there. There's nothing wrong with frozen vegetables -- freezing veggies locks in the nutrients, meaning frozen veggies can contain more nutrients than produce that's been transported a great distance and sitting in the grocery store for days. When you can, treat yourself to fresh vegetables in season, which are generally cheaper. If you chop your veggies yourself, you can also save, so avoid pre-bagged salads, 'baby carrots', etc. Washing your own lettuce and peeling and chopping carrots can be a pain, but it's worth it if it means it enables you to afford fresh veggies. Don't worry about buying organic fruits and vegetables -- just wash them well and consider soaking them in diluted lemon juice or vinegar to remove any pesticide residue. It's better to save your budget for organic animal products.

Healthy inexpensive staples:

-Dried beans
-Brown rice
-Canned tomatoes (use to make bean chili, pasta sauces, etc.)
-100% whole-grain pasta
-Canned anchovies and sardines are a great, inexpensive source of Omega 3s; use them in sauces or mix with capers, olives and garlic to make a nice spread for toast
-Bananas
-Citrus fruits (oranges, grapefruit, etc)
-Sweet potatoes
-Cabbages (maybe not as inexpensive in a warmer climate, but there must be an equivalent)

And completely agree with GI Jane's suggestion -- spices can make boring staples more exciting. Keep plenty of onions and garlic on hand, and experiment with spices such as cayenne pepper, cumin, oregano, and garam masala.

Good luck!

Its is funny when I read that peole make 30k a year and that is not enough. I work as a manager in Romania and I make about 7k euros (10k dollars) a year I eat tuna once a day (1.8 dollars/ can ) I ear fruit , al kinds, beans, fish and chicken breast. I dont think that there is any problem of living healthy if you have 30k/year

Different locations different price points.

To put things in perspective. How much are you paying for rent? Here in Bay Area, California I am paying 1.2k a month for a small one bedroom apartment, and it is considered cheap.

UD