mikel0181 Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Doing some research for entrepreneurship, it would be great if you all could help me out Please answer honestly and post any conclusions you have about how much it costs to live a vegetarian life. I would use old stats from the internet but i know prices must have gone up since then. I'm going to be comparing this to a polling of meat eaters i'll do at school. I'll let you all know what i find. Also, if you are spending under 100 dollars please let me know what you are eating because you are spending about $1.10 per meal if you only eat 3 meals. p.s. it would help if i also knew how much per month you spend on protein and supplements but separately Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dallas Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Health food is expensive here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikel0181 Posted March 3, 2011 Author Share Posted March 3, 2011 where u located? im in florida and im tossing about 80 bucks a week out the window. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lobsteriffic Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 If I was just feeding myself it would probably be about $200-$250 a month. I eat mostly veggies, fruit, dried beans, rice, and tofu. I don't buy many mock meats or vegan specialty items unless they are on sale. If I was REALLY trying to save money and didn't buy much fruit or fresh produce, I could probably live on $150 a month. I voted for $350 though since my husband is also in my food budget and he eats more expensively (soy milk, cereal, sandwich bread, frozen pizzas, etc) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InmostLight Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 $150-200, but only because there's a great mainly-organic outlet where I live and it's somehow MUCH cheaper than regular grocers. If I was shopping at a typical grocer, it would be from $250-300. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cold Fission Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Depends on what im doing with my life.Right now im saving hardcore so im trying to spend 50 or less a week. If im just eating all i want like i've been doing the last 2 years ill spend about 150 a week.Sometimes more. Right now my meals are either white rice with ketchup or brown rice with soy sauce.It's pretty intense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kckas Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Over half the food I buy are through co-ops so I get wholesale pricing on fruits and veggies. I also order dried fruits and nuts through a co-op I run where we get wholesale prices. And then there is another food co-op I order through. I like to buy beans and grains in bulk and on sale since it's much cheaper that way. I'll also buy the occasional processed vegan items in bulk if they are on sale through our food co-op. For a family of five we spend about $100 a week on food. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrilliumFortnight Posted March 9, 2011 Share Posted March 9, 2011 I doubt that bodybuilders are representative of typical costs for a vegetarian or vegan diet, even if you separate out protein/supplements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MillionDollarVeggie Posted March 9, 2011 Share Posted March 9, 2011 Round about 200-250, closer to about 220 a month, its two people. Its a tight immoveable budget since we're on food stamps though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gsop_3 Posted March 9, 2011 Share Posted March 9, 2011 I know it's not really fair to count me in the mix, but the school I work at provides free food for three meals a day with at least one Vegan option at each. So, my family of four eats almost free during the month. we do buy a lot of carrots and other veggies for juicing but that's it...maybe not more than $50 for the month - cheap in China. As far as supplements go, I've been given free pea protein and my family back in the states sends me vitamins, so I don't really spend anything there either. Every breakfast, Monday through Friday, has fresh hot soy milk and I take home about 2 liters of it and use that for my protein drinks. I make my own peanut butter and use it for protein bars at about $1 a pound. If I buy nuts, then that alone is about $50 per month.In conclusion, when school is in session, we MAYBE spend $100 per month on food for a family of 4. When school is not in session, we spend at least 4x...$400+ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikel0181 Posted March 14, 2011 Author Share Posted March 14, 2011 wow gsop, i am impressed! i never thought of making my own pb, is it time consuming? and kckas, can you tell me more about food co-ops? i think id like to try that very much. cold fission, i know sometimes you just gotta do what you can to survive, but is that healthy? hope your situation improves! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtguy1976 Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 wow gsop, i am impressed! i never thought of making my own pb, is it time consuming?The way I make PB, almond butter (really any nut or sunflower seed will also do)-1 to 1.5 cups of nutspeanut or canola oilPlace nuts in food processor and mix for about 1 min. It will start to clump up and then I add some oil, a little at a time to smooth it out. The more oil you add, the more easier it is to spread. Takes maybe 5 to 10 mins to make, clean up is the longest part of that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gsop_3 Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 wow gsop, i am impressed! i never thought of making my own pb, is it time consuming?The way I make PB, almond butter (really any nut or sunflower seed will also do)-1 to 1.5 cups of nutspeanut or canola oilPlace nuts in food processor and mix for about 1 min. It will start to clump up and then I add some oil, a little at a time to smooth it out. The more oil you add, the more easier it is to spread. Takes maybe 5 to 10 mins to make, clean up is the longest part of that.Yes, that's pretty much what I do. A good ratio is about 2 Tablespoons of oil (peanut is best) per cup of nuts. Spanish peanuts tend to have more oil and need less added. My process is a little more time consuming since I buy raw peanuts and roast or fry them myself. Then, I have to remove the skins before I can blend them. I find a Vitamix works great! I must say, the reward is FAR above any time spent working on it!So, I just sit down to watch a movie and get to work. Keeps my otherwise idle hands busy doing something useful. OR gives me something to keep my mind occupied while I prepare my food! ...whichever way you want to look at it. LOL For the protein bars, well more like a food ball/bolus, I mix about 2T peanut butter with 30-40g pea protein 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 2 teaspoons of brown sugar in just enough hot water to dissolve. Then, mix it all up and form it into a ball, place in a (reusable) plastic baggie for transport and all is good! Note: it's a bit dry in the mouth but rinses down well enough with some ... green tea in my case! mm! mm! good!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikel0181 Posted March 21, 2011 Author Share Posted March 21, 2011 WOW! i had no idea it was that easy!!!. I'm going to try to make some this weekend. Gsop, i like what you did there making those protein bars, is there any chance i can add protein to the home made peanut butter and preserve consistency so i can still eat it on pb and j's? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gsop_3 Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 sure can! if you want it to be creamy add a little soy or nut milk until it's the thinness you want! It's that simple. ENJOY! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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