I’m very disheartened that it is more expensive to live a healthy lifestyle. I believe it’s a basic human right to be able to eat clean, uncontaminated food, but over the past 60 years it has become a luxury rather than a norm.
So here are my top tips to live an organic lifestyle on a budget no matter where you are in life:
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Shop around – Just like conventional supermarkets, organic stores may sell different brands and have different prices, or have varying discounts on similar products. Learn where to buy what you need at the best price. As an example, there is an organic store that sells 2 x organic tomato puree for $5 and I often see the same item for $3.50 each elsewhere. I buy 10 bottles a month to take advantage of this deal. You’ll eventually start to know who sells what, at the most affordable price, saving you time and money on travel too.
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Buy Bulk - Try to buy the larger size where possible with your regular products. Save up for the larger item as buying it less often will cut the cost. You could also team up with a few friends and pool your money together to buy bulk items and then split it up between you.
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Shop at Farmers Markets - Buying direct from the farmer cuts out the middleman and saves you money. The produce will be fresh as the farmer will often pick the produce the night before. Most Farmers Markets have a few organic farmers stalls, so try a few to find a market that has what you need.
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Become a member of an Organic Cooperative - An organic Co-op is a group of people working together as a team to purchase bulk organic fresh produce and dry goods. They split up all of the food into boxes and each member of the co-op gets a box of organic food at a discounted price. Co-ops are becoming very popular so seek them out and apply to become a member. It’s also a great way to connect with like-minded people and to be part of a community project.
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Work for food - Connect with organic farmers and see if they are interested in exchanging some fresh produce for your assistance on their farm. Farmers are often very busy and lacking man power, so see if they are interested in swapping some fresh veggies for your help in the garden.
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Grow your own food - One of my favourite experiences is growing my own organic food! It’s a fulfiling activity to build a vegetable patch, fill it with certified organic soil, plant organic seedlings or seeds, add water and watch it explode. Within a few months your patch fills up with vibrant organic fresh produce and it’s free to pick food fresh out of your garden to use in your kitchen to prepare a meal.
Everyday I would walk out into my vegetable patch water it, pull a few weeds, remove a few cabbage moth caterpillars and that’s it. Often you end up with surplus fresh vegetables and you end up giving them away to friends and family! This is definitely my favourite and most recommended way of eating organic food on a budget!
- Buy Wholesale - For those of you with entrepreneurial skills I would recommend starting your own business in the health industry so that you can purchase some of your organic food at wholesale prices.. By having a business in the industry and registering an ABN you are able to apply for a wholesale account with various suppliers. This way you can buy and sell products to earn extra income, get your products at a cheaper price and potentially start a new career or small business on the side.
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Damian with a bulk buy of Organic Veggies![/caption]What ever way you find to get organic food into the mouths of you and your family is well worth it. Eating organic food drastically reduces the amount of disease causing chemicals entering your body and increases the amount of nutrition in your diet. This way you will look and feel younger and your body has a chance to heal and rejuvenate itself.
You can’t put a price on good health and many people don’t actually appreciate their health until it’s taken away from them. Take it from me as I had to learn the hard way, take the time and make the effort today to live an organic lifestyle.
