The holiday season is upon us, and everyone is scrambling to find the best deal on cheap turkeys, stuffing, potatoes and gravy for their holiday meal(s). Grocery stores are promoting their sales, and home cooks are rejoicing!
But in what kind of world does it make sense that a turkey can be raised and sold for only .40 to .50 per pound??? That is scary when you really, truly think about it.
(Note: Yes, some stores offer low prices as “loss-leaders” to try to gain additional sales from a customer, so one way or another, there is a higher cost to all cheap food.)
Americans are brainwashed to expect cheap products, but we need to reprogram our minds to reject food raised in “factory-farmed” conditions.
Cheap meat (including poultry, eggs and dairy) is a direct result of factory farming, which abuses animals and is destroying our environment.
And it’s not just animal products, cheap produce is causing poor soil quality, which then demands toxic fertilizers and pesticides; this affects the health of farm workers, as well as the health of those consuming the produce.
It’s unfortunate, but we’ve become a nation that is dictated by the thrill of a “bargain.” I’m not saying that we shouldn’t strive to save money when grocery shopping, but we shouldn’t expect unreasonably rock-bottom prices either. There’s a reason that it’s so cheap, and we’re paying the price with our health and our environment.
There can be a middle ground. Consuming less animal products and more plant-based products will allow you to buy better quality food.
Do we not love ourselves enough to give our bodies the best we can when it comes to food? We can change the world when we vote with our forks!
I suppose it’s easy for me to get on a soapbox and spew advice; I don’t have a large family to feed (there’s just two of us) so I consider myself lucky that I am able to make a choice to purchase better quality food.
My little family is not “well-off” – we’re middle-class, actually lower-middle-class. I worry about what will happen when we “retire” in a few years; how will we survive with the money we’ve saved?
Medical costs are exploding sky high; I see that as a direct correlation to the cost of cheap food, so I intend to try to keep our bodies healthy! I’m hoping that spending more on good quality food will pay off in our older years with a fuller active life without obesity, cancer, diabetes, and chronic pain.
Helpful Links:
http://blogs.forward.com/the-jew-and-the-carrot/145869/
google search “high cost of cheap meat and produce“
