Friday, January 21, 2011


I've been researching ways to save money buying organic food. Like most Americans money is tight so every dollar counts, so we're trying to buy to more organic foods without going to much above our current food budget.



  • Try to limit shopping large organic supermarkets.
  • Grow your own food.
  • Focus on buying things in their natural state. Packaged food can get pretty expensive(especially meals) compared to buying the whole foods or ingredients and making it yourself.
  • Buy in season. Out of season foods are more expensive because their shipped from around the world and there's little available to keep up with the demand. So buying is seasonal is easy on the wallet as well as our ecosystem.
  • Buy in bulk. Apparently bulk retailers like Sams Club have organic food but make sure to only buy things your going to use a lot.
  • Read your labels. Make sure to read the ingredients lists. Many labels say organic on the front, but on the back it says it only contains  about 30% organic or just one or two organic ingredients.
  • U-Pick Farm. Finding a pick-it-yourself farm Pickyourown.org can save you a lot of money imagine paying $1.oo for 1lb of blueberries!. On some farms you don't even have to pay you just give them a portion of your pickins. We are definitely going to do this soon and experiment with freezing and canning.
  • Buy non-certified organic food. Farmers have to go through a transition period of 2 to 3 years before they can become certified. Becoming certified can quite expensive and some simply cannot afford to become certified.
  • Buy store or "off" brands. These brands often have  prices significantly lower than their well known competitors.
  • Plan your meals. This is a great way to avoid unnecessary purchases. We've all have done it, we go to the store buy things that look good and see if we can throw them together and make something that resembles a meal later.
  • Prioritize. Some conventional produce is less likely to test positive for pesticides. The Environmental Working Group has come up with a short list of the cleanest and dirtiest produce. You can print a wallet size list or download the app at  Foodnews.org.
  • Check out Localharvest.org this site will connect you to local sustain-ably grown food. It has Co-ops, Farmers markets, restaurants, online stores, ...everything. We found markets and restaurants in our area we had no idea about.
  • Coupons, coupons, and more coupons.  Go to  Mambosprouts.com this site gives you free coupons, special offers, recipes, and a chance to enter contests and giveaways. Sign up. Visit Kiwimagonline.com here you will not only get coupons for organic food but Eco friendly gadgets as well. last but not least, check out Organicfoodcoupons.com this site gives you links to manufacturers' websites to check for coupons.

I hope this helps and if anyone knows other ways to save feel free to share.

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