My Vegetable Garden Just Got 4 - 6% More Valuable

Our garden is one of the best investments we make each year. This is last year's cash crop. Better than a gold mine, and more fun.

I find it interesting to see that many consumer staples that we don't need are getting cheaper and cheaper, while things that we do need, like food, are getting more expensive all the time.

This year, the price of vegetables is predicted to rise between 4 and 6 percent, and that is after quickly rising fruit and vegetable prices in previous years.

The way I see it, growing a garden gets better and better with each year that passes. This year alone, my garden will be 4 to 6% more valuable than last year. 

Compare that to the 0.5% that I get on my "high interest" bank account. A garden is even a better investment than gold bullion, and a lot less volatile. 

And unlike money, or gold, or stocks and bonds, when you invest in gardening, you can eat the results. Plus what a garden does for you soul can not be counted in dollars. It is an investment in personal wellness.

Happy Summer, and happy gardening. Or, for those of you in the Southern Hemisphere, happy Winter, and happy gardening.

Home Cooking Reduces Packaging Waste

Cast iron Corn bread. Can you even buy cornbread in a store? I have never seen it.

It seems like everything in the grocery store comes in plastic. Even the stuff that doesn't, often gets put in plastic before it leaves the store. Non-plastic packaging may be less harmful, but it still uses precious resources. What is an aspiring zero-waster to do?
How about home cooking?

Making as much of our own food as we can helps us meet several objectives:


a) To avoid highly processed/low nutrition foods that may contain GMOs, nasty chemicals, hormones, antibiotics, high levels of sugar/salt/fat, and who knows what else? E-coli? Salmonella? Listeria?

b) To be able to control the ingredients in the food we eat, and

c) To create affordable dishes that are fresh, yummy, and that provide health promoting effects (food as medicine).


However, given the tidal wave of packaging (especially plastic) washing over the planet, there is a consideration that might be the most important of all. 

A big benefit of cooking at home is cutting down on packaging that contributes to both the garbage stream as well as recycling materials. Processed foods usually mean over-packaged foods. About 1/3 of the plastic produced in the world is used in the packaging industry. 

I used to think that humanity was going to pave over the entire world, but it looks like the globe will be shrink wrapped before that happens.

Granola bars before being cut.

Every time we make something at home rather than buy it pre-made from the store or take-out, we are avoiding packaging waste. Not to mention that cooking can be an immensely fun and rewarding activity.

Some packaging can be recycled, but in the major scheme of things, "Refuse" is better than "Recycle". Recycling still requires large energy inputs, from the trucks that pick up the stuff, shipping to a plant, recovery, then returning the materials into the system. 

A lot of times more basic foods come in friendlier packaging. Flour, for instance, comes in paper, and the same with whole oats. 

Two different kinds of veggie pizza.

One serving of baked beans in a reusable canning jar means one less tin can that needs to be recycled. And don't forget about the paper label (that used to be a living tree). 

Making a salad at home is easy when you use a pre-packaged salad kit. These are the ones that say "triple washed" and yet can still make you sick. A lot of the produce inside these kits comes from areas experiencing water stress, and all that washing wastes a lot of water.

The salad kits also contain several plastic bags within the bag. Much convenience usually means much waste. And they can make you sick. 

Make a salad at home with your own ingredients (washed the way you like) is also easy. The Big Food Industry has made us very lazy in the kitchen, and the unintended consequences always end up biting us in the behind (and other parts of the digestive system).

Tomato-based pasta sauce with tofu about to go in the freezer.

Cooking at home has multiple benefits for the individual, society and the environment. One of my favourites is that I am actively refusing the excessive packaging and waste involved with pre-packaged and processed foods. 

Food, and everything associated with it, should promote personal and planetary health, not illness and depletion of the gifts of Mother Nature. 

Cooking should be a sacred ritual unsullied by the sins of the corporate industrial food industry and its rallying cry of "profits before the people's and planetary health!"

Riot of Food vs Food Riot

Our garden is not a riot of food yet. More like a small, but promising disturbance. The radishes are really shaking things up.

I have never experienced a food riot, although in the beginning of the Great Recession in 2008 my food store looked like there had been a riot prior to my arrival. For the first time since I can remember, shelves were empty of staples. What was there was disheveled and picked over.

It was scary not knowing if things would get worse. Was this it? Was this the moment everything changed? Would the food riots I was reading about in the news come to my own city? Or was it different here?

It kind of was, and wasn't. The store soon returned to normal, although food prices have been steadily increasing since then. Now there may be lots of cauliflower on the shelves, but you may not feel like paying the price the grocer wants for it.

Either way, I would rather experience a riot of food than a food riot. And the way to ensure that is to grow a garden. That is what we are doing this year.

Although our garden got off to a slow start, we are off and running now. When our first planting of beans and peas did not go well, we planted again. The second planting was more successful - our perseverance paid off.

What a joy it is to be tending a garden again. It is a total immersion in nature, in life, in growth.  And most importantly, it is to experience hope for the future. Hope that you can take to the food bank and share with those around you.

Top 10 Reasons I Garden

A re-used wood pallet project that might be nice to have for the garden.

While my new garden is a bit late, my enthusiasm is high for pioneering our residential soil situation. The soil in my area is a light brown sandy loam with a fair amount of stones. While it has some nice qualities, such as good drainage, it needs to be amended. But what doesn't need to be changed for the better these days?

Getting soil to where you want it takes time, so patience is a nice quality for the gardener (or activist) to possess.

Developing patience is one of the reasons I garden. There are many, many others.

Here are a few:

Top 10 Reasons I Garden

1. A garden can't be rushed, and therefore teaches patience.
2. Vegetables aren't getting any cheaper these days (up 12% over the past year in Canada)
3. Spending time in the garden means time away from electronic entertainments.
4. There is no substitute for connecting with nature, and experiencing the green fuse first hand.
5. My 8 x 16 raised bed will be much more diverse than the grass it replaces.
6. It is good exercise.
7. Gardening is a good excuse to get outside, like walking a dog. Except that you can't eat your dog.
8. Being out and visible in your garden connects you to your neighbourhood.
9. I like to freely share the garden's fresh food abundance with others.
10. Veggies from the garden are much more nutritious (and tasty) than the wilted stuff shipped from thousands of kilometres away.

I could probably think of ten more reasons to garden quite easily. But I will stop there. Those seeds won't plant themselves. Happy gardening. 

Eating Ourselves And The Planet To Death

Bon Appetit?

We are eating ourselves and the planet to death. A new relationship with food is required.

Thai meditation teacher Ajaan Fuang is someone I have learned from when it comes to my relationship with food. He was known for his wise words on many subjects, including concepts surrounding food and eating.

After a trip to America, one of his students asked him if he had had a chance to eat pizza while he was there. He mentioned that he had, and that it was very good. This surprised one of his students who had gone along on the trip.

"You ate only two bites," the student said. "We thought you didn't like it."

"Two bites were enough to fill me up," Fuang answered. "Why would you want me to eat more?"

Once a woman who had been studying with him for a short while decided to prepare some food to give to him. Wanting to make sure it would be something he liked, she asked him straight out, "What kind of food do you like?"

I love his answer: "Food that's within reach."

Fuang was very familiar with the problems our stomachs get us into.

"We human beings have long tongues, he said. "You sit around and suddenly your tongue flicks out to sea: You want to eat seafood. Then it flicks around the world: You want to eat foreign cuisine.

He also knew the solution - "You have to train your tongue and shrink it down to size."

Even before eating became an entertainment for the masses he was advising anyone that would sincerely listen, "When you eat, keep your mind on your breath, and contemplate why you're eating. If you're eating simply for the taste of the food, then what you eat can harm you."

Training our tongues and shrinking them down to size will go a long way toward changing our relationship with food and restoring health on Earth. Besides, in these days of rapidly increasing food prices, who can actually afford to eat recreationally?

Get Cooking: Tips For Beating Rising Food Prices

The cost of food is going up and increases are likely to continue

While we do strive to not buy anything, we currently have to buy our food. Since 2008 that has been getting a lot more expensive. This trend is not likely to reverse soon, if ever.

At the same time that a lot of stuff you don't need gets less expensive, everything you need (really need, as in survival) is getting disturbingly more expensive. Big screen TVs? Less expensive. Gas, electricity, rent, and food? More expensive.

That people are concerned about food is evidenced here on our blog. A post on reducing food waste is one of the all time top posts on NBA, showing that many are doing everything they can to stretch the food budget in inflationary times.

With the US drought forecasted to inflate prices another 5% next year, I thought it was time to share more of the tips that Linda and I use to keep our food costs down.

Background

The average family of four spends about $237 dollars per week, or about $12,300 dollars per year, on food consumed at home. The same family spends $5200 dollars more on food consumed outside of home. A 5% increase means an added $875 dollars per year on food for our fictional family.


Money Saving Tips

With some simple solutions and planning, one can mitigate impending food price increases. These are some of the tips we use to stretch our food dollar, and maintain a whole food diet.

1. Limit, or eliminate eating out. I know how tempting it is to take what seems like the fast or easy route to filling the tummy, but fight that impulse. Meals eaten out cost 6 to 10 times more than a similar meal cooked at home.
2. Skip pre-packaged frozen meals. Convenience foods sacrifice taste and quality for ease of use. Plus they cost up to 4 times as much as home cooked meals.
3. Do your own washing and cutting. Pre-cut/pre-washed, or grated foods will cost you twice as much.
4. Learn to cook your favourite foods. When we quit eating out that didn't mean leaving behind all our favourite restaurant meals - we just learned to cook them at home. It has been fun, and satisfying.
5. Buy generic for certain items. Some products such as flour, sugar, cereals, salt, and milk are indistinguishable from their pricier brand name counterparts.
6. Plan your grocery shopping trips to avoid impulse buying. We always shop with a detailed list from which we do not deviate. This alone can save up to $20/month for the average shopper prone to impulsive edible purchases.
7. Don't waste the food you have bought. This seems obvious, but a large amount of food is wasted in the average home. If you haven't already, see our post on reducing food waste.
8. Eat less meat. Some products, like meat, will probably rise in price more than 5%. Explore non-meat alternatives like beans/grains, tofu, nuts and seeds. They are less expensive, and better for you.
9. Bake your own bread products. Buying two loaves of hearty, healthy bread can cost as much as a 10 kg (20 lbs) bag of flour. You can make a lot of bread with that much flour.
10. Take advantage of sales. Closely watch flyers for weekly specials, and stock up when the price is right. When we find peanut butter on sale, for example, we purchase several jars at a time to add to our well-stocked pantry.

By following these money saving tips it may be possible to make up that forecasted 5% rise in food prices, and then some. It is not that difficult, and besides saving money, these tips will help you to eat more healthfully, and have more fun in the kitchen.

What is your favourite money saving tip when it comes to the purchasing and preparation of yummy, nutritious food?

$ave Up To 50% On Groceries

Beware the center aisles of the grocery store

I may not be buying much, but a person has to eat and there is no way around that. Since I am not tucked away on a little farm achieving food self-sufficiency, that means going to a grocery store, an increasingly painful process.

Shopping for food is getting more expensive all the time. I am not happy about setting new records at the till, despite shouting "BINGO" each time I do. To try to prevent this from occurring too often, I have a few strategies for controlling the food budget.

Price Per 100 Grams

One of my favourite strategies is to use price per unit of measurement in order to make direct comparisons. In Canada our produce is still priced per pound - despite adopting the metric system in the 1970's - but most other items show prices per 100 grams.

Showing the price per unit of measurement allows comparison across different package sizes for the best deal. In my store, the price/100g is shown on the shelf along with the total package price. By looking at the standard price, I have often found that larger sizes are not necessarily the best deal. Sometimes smaller packages cost less per 100g. And don't get sucked in by bulk.

Bulk Not Always Best

I used to think that the bulk section always provided the best deals. I was wrong. Armed with my price/100g, I can compare the price of bulk items to packaged ones on the shelf. Sometimes bulk items cost less, but sometimes they are much more expensive.

This can make a huge difference when it comes to expensive foods such as walnuts or almonds. Prices change frequently, so I take the time to check bulk prices versus packaged prices every time. The savings can amount to several dollars per kilo (2.2 lbs).

30% to 50% OFF

By far the most fun are the heavily discounted grocery items - anywhere from 30% to 50% off. The produce section of our store usually has a shelf of these half priced items. Often there is absolutely nothing wrong with the food, and a lot of it just has minor blemishes, or has been sitting for a while.

I have purchased giant bags of half price mushrooms, then processed them at home to make soup and pasta sauce which I freeze in jars. I love half price bananas. Ripe bananas can be peeled, put into baggies, and frozen whole. Take one or two out at a time to add to an orange to make an icy, yummy smoothie. Or thaw a few and make a banana bread.

Other grocery items are also frequently discounted 50% for reasons that don't affect the food inside. Why pay full price for breakfast cereal when the discount bin has identical boxes with a little cut in the cardboard (not in the inner package) for half the cost?

Sales Specials - Pantry Packers

Another way to save on food is to take advantage of sales. Many stores have a 3 month rotation schedule on sales so if, for example, peanut butter is on sale, I will buy enough for 3 months. This can lead to a well-stocked pantry, which is a beautiful thing at any time, but is especially precious during an emergency.

Not Buying Any Crappy Food

Often the best way is to save 100% on items by just not buying them. There are many items in a grocery store that barely pass for real food and should be avoided altogether. Your body does not need cookies, or chips, or pop, or candy, or...

The oft-spoken advice to "stick to the outside of the store" gives us a clue as to what aisles we should be avoiding. By shopping the perimeter of the store you will find whole foods and skip all the packaged, overpriced items found in the center aisles. You'll save money, and eat healthier too!

Leave a comment and tell us your favourite strategies for saving money on groceries. Until we get our gardens and local food production going, we are going to need them.

Bon Appetit!

Occupy My Mind Camp Releases Demands

It can be done wherever you are, and no threats of eviction

A comrade asked some good questions regarding the various Occupy camps in cities around the world. (My own question is why don't we Occupy the Forest?) "How", my friend asked, "will the Occupy protesters know when it is time to go home? What are their demands, and how long will it take to implement them? When will they be done?"

Will the Multitude's War on Inequality be like the War on Terrorism, and take generations to 'win'? If so, the Occupy camps are going to need better accommodations.

Since the Occupation of My Mind, in solidarity with the broader movement, I have been working on a list of demands. My General Assemblies, which quickly achieved consensus on all points, have generated the following list:

To: The 1%

From: Occupy My Mind Camp

Subject: List of Demands

1. Replace corporations with cooperatives. Cooperatives are "a different way of doing business, one focused on human need not human greed, where the members (who own and govern the business) collectively enjoy the benefits instead of all profits going just to shareholders."
2. Tax those most able to pay. Consider it the cost of enjoying the advantages provided by the country that helped generate all that wealth. Not to mention the externalities, or negative effects, of generating all that wealth.
3. Put the health of people and the planet first. People and the planet before profits.
4. Start a War on War. Figures released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute last year showed that worldwide military expenditure in 2009 totaled an estimated $1.6 trillion. This was an increase of 5.9% in real terms compared to 2008 and an increase of 49% since 2000. That is OUR money, and I can think of better ways to spend it.
5. Adequately fund education for all. Education is the answer to many of the world's problems. $1.6 trillion diverted from the torture and kill budget line, and allocated to global education, would go a long way. Total global public education expenditure for 2004 was $1.97 trillion.
6. Allocate resource cards at birth to all humans. A resource card would track the consumption of each humans 'fair share' of the planet's bounty. Once you used your fair share, that would be it. This would ensure individuals use their allocation carefully, and sustainably. Very carefully.
7. End speculation on food commodities. In this casino, increased winnings mean more starving people. Goldman Sachs alone made $5 billion in profits on commodities speculation in 2009.

Alright 1%, there it is. This is only a beginning - the list is subject to additions as they come up in future general assemblies. Although I expect immediate action, I am occupying my camp for the long haul. Several decades more if I am lucky, but time is running out.

If we see real movement toward these goals immediately (people continue to die as we hesitate) the dedicated folks tenting in the various Occupy camps can go home feeling victorious before winter sets in.

Or we could all go and support Occupy Perth for a few months. Maybe not - they were evicted a few days ago.

The 1% may have all of the money, but I am freeing my mind from their consumer shackles. As I watch the evictions taking place in camps across the world, I am more dedicated than ever to continue The Occupation of My Mind.

"Find out for yourself what is truth, what is real. Discover that there are virtuous things and there are non-virtuous things. Once you have discovered for yourself give up the bad and embrace the good." - Buddha

Peas Be With You

Perfect peas in my patio container garden

When Buffy Sainte-Marie wrote, "God is alive, magic is afoot", she was probably thinking about a vegetable garden. If she was thinking about a particular vegetable, I am sure it was peas. No vegetable more exemplifies a garden for me than peas picked right off the plant, whether they are shelling, snap, sugar or snow peas. Pick them - eat them - magic.

This year we planted snap peas in our patio container garden. There was at least one good thing about our late summer - the long, cool, wet spring weather provided ideal conditions for growing peas.

After an early trimming by foraging Sitka deer, the peas flowered prolifically with economical, small white flowers. Soon mini-pods were poking out, and before long dangling green shells of perfection were hiding among the vines, each one a happy discovery of deliciousness.

After a couple of harvests, and with the promise of several more, I looked at the snap peas in the grocery store. They were in sad cellophane packages squished flat, and the pods looked lifeless. When I picked them up, instead of hard and crispy, they were rubbery and limp.

It looked like the long voyage from a field in China had taken its toll. Now the snap peas were nutrient-deficient, drained of magic, and expensive. "God is dead here", I thought as I put them down.

Growing a garden over the years, whether large or small, has provided some of the best evidence that "God is alive, and magic afoot". This year's crop of sweet, crunchy, nutritious (and darned near free) snap peas reconnected me with the miracle of growing my own food, and the satisfaction of picking peas off the vine instead of off the boat from the other side of the world.

Peas be with you.

Deflating Inflation

- click to inflate

Prices increases seem to be coming at us like a buffalo stampede, and they are stomping all over our hard earned dollars. Inflation was last reported at 3.7 percent for Canada, slightly above the average from 1915 to 2010. However, it was the largest increase since March 2003.

The inflation rate refers to a general rise in prices measured against a standard level of purchasing power. An inflation calculator can be used to find that a basket of goods that cost $100 dollars in 1984 costs just over $200 dollars today, a 100% increase.

Canadian Price Increases, May 2011

    •    Energy prices advanced 16.6% during the 12 months to May, following a 17.1% increase in April.
    •    Gasoline prices rose 29.5%, the largest increase since September 2005. The latest year-over-year increase follows a 26.4% gain in April, and leaves the gasoline index just below the peak level reached in July 2008.
    •    Prices were also higher for fuel oil (+28.2%) and electricity (+0.9%), while they declined 5.3% for natural gas.
    •    Prices for groceries rose 4.2% in the 12 months to May, following a 3.7% gain in April. Prices increased for many staples, such as meat, bread and fresh milk.
    •    Prices for food purchased from restaurants increased 3.2%, following a 2.8% rise in April.

Combined with tough economic times and small or non-existent wage increases, inflation can have a major effect on household budgets. Making lifestyle changes can help mitigate the effects of inflation, and save you money.

Tips For Deflating Inflation

We can take steps to deflate the effects of inflation on our lives. The following are some tips that I have found useful:

Increasing energy prices are here to stay. Draft-proofing your home and possibly adding insulation will help you use less energy. So will keeping your home cooler (or warmer) and adjusting your clothing to maintain comfort. Try to get any passive solar gain you can by opening drapes and letting the sun in during cold weather.

Gasoline prices are reaching near-peak levels, and are unlikely to go down much in the future. We can respond to plus-$100 dollar a barrel oil by making fewer, more efficient trips, and by taking public transportation.

For about the price of one tank of gas a person can purchase a reasonable bicycle.

We can also save energy and money by keeping life local. It is fun to get to know your own neck of the woods.

As groceries get more expensive gardening becomes more attractive. My patio container garden is providing small amounts of fresh, nutritious herbs and vegetables.

Meat is expensive. Rising meat prices can be avoided by increasing alternative proteins in your diet. Look for less expensive protein sources such as beans, quinoa, lentils, nuts and seeds, and tofu. Yum.

Making your own baked products can save a lot of money, and powdered milk is more convenient and less expensive than fresh.

Keep your pantry fully stocked - food in the pantry is better than cash in a bank account paying minuscule amounts of interest. Plus, with a full pantry you will be ready to ride out adverse weather events, disasters, or global economic collapse.

In the 1970's about 10% of the average food budget was spent in restaurants. Today that figure is closer to 50%. The convenience of eating out is costly even without inflating prices.

I never leave home without a bag lunch, picnic, or snack of some sort. I bring water or juice in a reusable container. Once I am out and about there is no need to buy anything. Preparing your own food is less expensive, and can be much healthier. Good food is good medicine.

Making small lifestyle changes, and living more simply, can help reduce the effects of inflation, and allow us to live more efficiently.

Reducing Food Waste

Monthly food waste for average American family of four  - click to enlarge

North Americans eat a lot of food. We also throw a lot out. In feeding ourselves we waste a whopping 50% of total food production. The average American family of four wastes 122 lbs of food per month, as outlined in the image above. That's a lot of food.

In the 1940's an average food budget took 30% of personal income. In 2007 only 13% of income was required. Cheap food is easier to waste. However, food is rapidly becoming more expensive.

I try to maintain a zero waste kitchen, not only to honour my food and the people who bring it to me, but also to maximize my food dollar. Mind you, running a kitchen takes time, and one must be constantly vigilant for rogue food just waiting to go bad.

Food has been getting less expensive since the 1940s...
until recently.

I like to indulge my taste preferences when I prepare meals, but most important is consuming what needs to be eaten in order to make sure food is enjoyed while it is fresh.

So rather than asking, "What do I feel like eating?" I ask, "What needs to be eaten?" By planning meals according to what needs to be eaten, I have cut down on food waste.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated that recovering just 5 percent of waste food could feed four million people a day. A recent survey by the WWF found that 3% of the U.K.'s greenhouse gas emissions come from wasted food. This fumbled food accounted for 6% of the country's water consumption.

Cutting down our food waste may not solve world hunger and greenhouse-gas related problems, but it will go a long way to feeding more of us and taking a burden off our beleaguered atmosphere. And it saves you money.

Tips For Reducing Food Waste

• If you live within walking or biking distance to a good grocery store try buying smaller orders more often. Fresher food and less spoilage results, although it could also lead you to replace your cavernous fridge with a Euro-sized model.
• Be vigilant - don't let food hide in your fridge/freezer. Keep tabs on your precious stocks.
• Use your freezer to extend the life of foods. A full freezer runs more efficiently.
• Save the boiling water from making vegetables for soup.
• Cleaned vegetable scraps/peelings can be used to make vegetable stock. Save up scraps in a container in the freezer until you have a few cups worth to boil up.
• Use all leftovers. For me leftovers are the ultimate fast food.
• Give food away instead of throwing it away. Is there someone around that would appreciate any food you will not be eating? A baker neighbour of mine had a major cheesecake failure that he could not sell, and was going to toss it. I asked for it. It didn't look like it should, but it tasted perfectly great. 
• Try gleaning. The term traditionally refers to the act of picking up grain in the fields after the harvest is over. It is used more widely now and could refer to food rescue of any type - picking apples in an orchard after harvest, grocery store dumpster diving, or gathering cast away produce after a farmers market.
• French documentary film maker Agnès Varda made an amazing film about gleaners in modern day France.
• Not as extreme as dumpster diving, you can get produce for a big discount before it hits the dumpster. Most grocery stores sell imperfect produce in a special area, and amazing deals happen here. I get large bags of mushrooms for 50% off, then make mushroom stock to freeze that can later be made into soup or sauces.
• Any organic material that is not eaten can be composted in a pile or worm bin, then used as fertilizer in your vegetable garden.

What are some of your favourite ways to reduce food waste?

Coping With Increasing Food Prices

Gardens are good for the pocketbook as well as the soul

Our major expense, like most people, is housing, followed by food. The cost of both are increasing, but food prices have recently hit highs not seen since the global food riots in 2008.

Will coffee prices increase by 45% in 2011? Oranges by 35%? Salmon by 30%? Time will tell, but expect more expensive food and energy moving forward. It makes living on a budget all the more challenging, but many wonderful responses are available.

 Responses To High Food Prices

Cook your own food more often. It is probably safe to say, with all our conveniences and a lack of time, that fewer of us cook than ever before. We are paying the price. Convenience foods are expensive, and their ingredients are questionable. Eating food you have joyfully prepared yourself will reduce your desire for industrial-strength food replacement products.

Change your food habits. You can save money on your food bill by cutting down on processed and luxury foods, such as coffee or pop and fast food. A switch from coffee to green tea will save money, and offer many health benefits. Replace fast food and processed snacks with homemade sandwiches, vegetables, nuts, and fruit.

Grow more of your own food. Growing fresh, nutritious foods from your own soil is one of the best ways to fight high prices. It is also good for exercise, fresh air, and connecting with the Earth. Community gardens are becoming more popular, but any bit of soil will do. Good bye grass, hello green onions. 

Buy local. Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way to buy fresh food directly from a local farmer.
 
Eat less. Most of us eat more calories than we need, and a supervised, low-calorie diet may be better. Some species on a calorie restricted diet lived twice as long as those fed a regular diet in research studies. 

Try one or two vegetarian meals per week. Beans, lentils, tofu, and other plant-based proteins are inexpensive alternatives that lend themselves to a wide variety of healthy, tasty dishes.