A good way to save money at the grocery store is to replace
meat products with fruits and vegetables. Eliminating meat reduces the average
grocery bill by about a third. For the
cost of a single steak, one could have a vegetarian feast for a family of four.
Comparing the cost of animal protein to vegetable protein,
the savings are significant. In the U.S.,
relatively inexpensive beef, such as ground round, averages approximately $3
per pound, boneless chicken breasts cost $3.40 a pound, and canned tuna is
about $2 per pound. Vegetarian protein
such as dried beans and lentils costs less than $1 per pound, and rice, the
vegetarian staple, can be found for sixty to seventy cents per pound.
Consumers would also be surprised to know how much of their monthly
electric bill and/or gas bill is used to refrigerate and cook meat. Meat has to be cooked in order to be safe and
palatable. Fruits and vegetables for the most part can be eaten raw, but when
they are used in baked recipes, they take a fraction of cooking time compared
to meat.
In many homes, refrigerators are the greatest user of
electricity. The average family could use a substantially smaller regrigerator/freezer if they did not need it for meat products. Over 80% of the space in a typical refrigerator is used for meat and dairy
products. Although some fruits and vegetables have a longer shelf life when
refrigerated, many veggies/fruits will keep for several days, if not weeks, without
refrigeration. On the other hand, it is mandatory to refrigerate or freeze meat
and dairy from the time it comes home from the market until it is cooked—a large
drain on the monthly electric bills. If
there happens to be a power outage for more than a day, all the meat and dairy
products in the refrigerator and/or freezer will probably spoil—at a potential
cost of several hundred dollars.
The major cost savings of a vegetarian
diet, however, is in the long term health benefits. Switching to a healthy vegetarian
diet will potentially save you thousands of dollars in future medical costs to
include prescriptions, medical treatment, insurance and loss of income.
Lastly, tax dollars in the U.S. are being diverted to support the meat industry. Although you can get a fast food hamburger for only a dollar, tax payer dollars contribute billions to the meat and dairy industries annually. Tax money that comes out of your paycheck is used to support the meat/dairy industries by subsidizing feed grain, water, insurance, grazing land, and environmental clean-up for the benefit of a handful of corporations that control the nation's meat supply.
Lastly, tax dollars in the U.S. are being diverted to support the meat industry. Although you can get a fast food hamburger for only a dollar, tax payer dollars contribute billions to the meat and dairy industries annually. Tax money that comes out of your paycheck is used to support the meat/dairy industries by subsidizing feed grain, water, insurance, grazing land, and environmental clean-up for the benefit of a handful of corporations that control the nation's meat supply.
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