CollegeB Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 Ive talked to several people recently about veganism and they all ask me if its expensive. I'm wondering if any of you have a good explanation for this. What have these people heard to make them ask such a thing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaelhobson Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 I think there are a few explanations for this. One is people confusing organic with vegan. Organic food is usually more expensive. Second is people comparing a box of four frozen veggie burgers for $4-5. to their pound of cheap ground beef etc. Third is many people are just plain ignorant, and not just about veganism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 If you eat crap like most meat eaters then you can eat crap as a vegan and be even cheaper...beans and rice, and ramen(I think a few types are vegan) for example. This is the lousy crap people our age eat anyway so I just tell people I could eat this but I choose not too...and also that it really can be cheaper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CollegeB Posted November 19, 2006 Author Share Posted November 19, 2006 Potter are you calling beans and rice crap? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odidnetne Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 Potter are you calling beans and rice crap? I was about to say the same thing. I normally say that if you stick with fresh whole vegetables and not buy a lot of boxed prepared food you can normally eat a lot of organic food for not that much money. I tell people that I make huge pots of soup for 4 - 6$, which I bag, freeze and eat at later dates. Apples, Bananas and other fruits are very inexpensive too, and eating lots of rolled oats instead of cold cereal can make veganism not that much at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rawj Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 I think if you stick with mostly unprocessed stuff then it will be cheaper,but if you go for a lot of veggie burgers and premade things it can be more expensive and if you do an average of both it can be about the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 It's just an excuse. Most non-vegans don't even know how much it costs to be vegan. When they try to argue with me about it, and tell ME how much MY food costs even though they don't know, then I tell them the facts about it. But they keep arguing and say stuff like 'Yeah but some soy and tofu stuff is more expensive than meat isn't it?' and I'm like 'Well yeah probably, but,' and they say 'well, I couldn't afford that'. They just want any excuse to not think about it; it doesn't matter that most vegan food is in fact the same FOOD that they eat anyway, so it is the same price (basics like fruit, vegetables, flour, pasta, rice, cereal, beans etc), or that other specifically vegan food is often cheaper or the same price as a non-vegan variety; they just want to hear that SOME of the food is more expensive, so that's what they focus on. People who smoke and say veganism is too expensive are a joke. But really, I don't think there is a difference in price between 'veganism' and 'non-veganism'. It really just depends on what you're going to buy. I guess some people get it in their head that on a vegan diet you MUST eat XYZ, and that XYZ is expensive, but I really think they just want to think that to make veganism sound harder, and their lives more comfortable as they are. Since when are fruit and vegetables the most expensive thing in the world... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lelle Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 I totally agree with richard! in many cases a vegan diet is even cheaper than an omnivorous one because you don't go buy expensive fastfood or eat at restaurants which costs a lot more than preparing the food yourself.okay, a vegan restaurant near my location would change that of course Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cristian Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 I don't think there's a huge difference but it depends on what you're going to buy. A meat eater can buy fresh meat or fish and spend a fortune, vegan meals, mock meat for example, are never that expensive, some fry's products I buy from a local health store are never more than £3.50. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathryn Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 Just like eating an omnivorious diet can be expensive (do you choose basic foods or go for gourmet? ) veganism can be cheap or pricey. Basic beans and grains and veggies can be cheap (especially if you buy the beans and grains in bulk from a coop), while gourmet vegan foods, or prepared raw foods can be expensive. But looking at things in the long term, the health benefits you gain from not eating animals products, and eating more phytonutrients, offsets the cost you might otherwise have to pay down the line for medical care for heart disease, diabetes or some forms of cancer (not to mention that you'll feel much better down the line without having to deal with those health concerns). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kuramus Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 Soy milk here is 4 times more expensive than regular milk. Tofu is 2 times more expensive than cheese. But, happy days for me, just recently a factory making soy bean curds and other weird things usually made from milk was opened in Estonia, and these things cost almost the same as the milk-based ones (just a bit more expensive), which ultimately made me go vegan from lacto-vegetarian. But I agree with the previous speakers that it is mostly just an excuse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pelicanAndrew Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 My friend thinks that it's more expensive because i chose to buy all organic foods. I tell him that if everyone bought organic, it wouldn't be expensive and it would help our planet immensely. He couldn't argue with that except he said that's not how it is now. So i told him to change something. If i convert him over i'll crapp my pants. He's an ex Skinhead who ran with the Fierce City Crew in chicago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CollegeB Posted November 19, 2006 Author Share Posted November 19, 2006 Hey he is an ex-skinhead so he's already made some life changes. Stay positive with him Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pelicanAndrew Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 Hey he is an ex-skinhead so he's already made some life changes. Stay positive with him Andrew I mean Skinhead like a pro-union skinhead, not a Nazi. There's a difference. Skinheads beat up nazis. Granted, violence is violence. He figured that one out. He's still an ass sometimes but that's the punk scene rhetoric. The sad thing is he knows why he does stupid things and prides himself in them. It's gonna be tough but i'll do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kuramus Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 Can anyone tell me how much soy milk costs when compared to regular milk in your country? Because logically thinking it should be cheaper to produce it since soymilk doesn't require the soy to go through animals... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lelle Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 about three times as much compared to normal milk I think Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaelhobson Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 Can anyone tell me how much soy milk costs when compared to regular milk in your country? Because logically thinking it should be cheaper to produce it since soymilk doesn't require the soy to go through animals... About double here for soymilk, but the price of organic cow milk and soymilk are bout equal. Almost all soymilk here is organic. The main reason for the price difference here is that the U.S. government heavily subsidizes the dairy industry. If not for the subsidies, cow milk would cost 3-5 times what soymiilk costs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lelle Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 The main reason for the price difference here is that the U.S. government heavily subsidizes the dairy industry. If not for the subsidies, cow milk would cost 3-5 times what soymiilk costs. same here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rawj Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 If you look at normal milk the gap can be big,but if you look at the little containers such as Nestles Quick (Sp) and Hershey's milk those are like a dollar something each and they are only around 12 ounces. So those add up to being more than the flavored soymilks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaSiren Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 I think people who think veganism is too expensive are the ones who want to eat basicly same way but vegan. Vegan burgers, vegan hot dogs, vegan chicken, vegan milk, vegan meat balls, etc. If they eat those items, it is much pricier than the omni diet they are eating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
offense74 Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 Since (healthy) vegans live longer we will probably spend more money during our lifetime. On the other hand if global warming really kicks in (should be any day now) the shipping costs for my pineapple will dramatically go down since I can grow them on my balcony. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 Tell them a vegan diet is cheaper than a omnivorous diet and chemo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JW Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 I find that winter is pretty expensive for produce, as everything we get is imported.It is definitely worth the extra $$ though!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 If I lived up north I think I'd have to live on grains, sprouts and dried fruit with only half of my greens intake...otherwise I wouldn't pay my heating bill or stop showering Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted November 20, 2006 Share Posted November 20, 2006 Neither milk nor soymilk are necessary in a diet anyway. Cow's milk, as far as I know, does more harm than good. Soy milk is handy to fit into a 'traditional' diet, or whatever you want to call it. But really, you don't need it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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