Is it very expensive to be Vegan or Vegetarian?

Question

It seems to me It Is

Answer 1

tofu is cheep. 5 nights of it for like 2 bux.  some of the veggie burgers, chicken things are, but you dont need them. beans are cheap, whole grain pasta, frozen veggies, rice...ect.

Answer 2

If you're buying meat substitutes, then yes it's totally expensive.  My firend noticed it being even worse going vegan.

Answer 3

uh, no, why would it be?

Meat is usually more expensive than other foods.  Check your last grocery store receipt.  What are the most expensive things on there?  Probably meat.

Answer 4

I'm a vegan and I don't eat any meat substitute like soy and I only eat veggies and fruits so it's a lot cheaper for me meat is SO expensive my dad eats meat and we [me my mom my sister] can get a meal for almost half of what it cost him for a pack a hamburger  

Answer 5

Not at all.  If you avoid processed foods, it's the cheapest (and healthiest) way to live.  Stick to whole foods, and buy a good cookbook.

Answer 6

No.  I save money actually, meat is so expensive.  you could get a block of tofu to feed 2-3 for like 2-3 bucks, whereas steak or chicken is going to cost 7-15 buck for that many ppl.  Also, being veg has taught me better portion sized, and being resourceful with leftovers, so I have saved on groceries.  Eggs are another cheap protein option, as are beans or rice/beans.  Plus, the organic soymilk I buy (hy-vee brand-the tastiest!) is currently cheaper than milk!

Answer 7

I would think so also, because the cost of milk vs soy milk, or the cost of mac n cheese dinner vs a easy vegan dinner.

The point though is that it is much healthier. It is hard to explain without spending hours upon hours (that is how much research i have done). But dairy is more unhealthy to you than meat. They say if they could cut one food out of the American diet to save the most lives, it would be cheese, then butter.

While meat has saturated fat in it, so does any dairy, and dairy also has morphine in it. Dont believe me? search google for "is cheese addictive",you will find out it is actually a natural morphine produced by any animal in their milk. It is trace amounts, but then they take all that fat from the milk and put it into cheese, and yogurt and sour cream, so this is now a concentrated version of it.

Also, milk and dairy industry is subsisted by taxes, so that tends to keep the price down. Hopefully one day the government will subsidized the soy industry or something to help bring those prices down, or just remove the subsidized dairy so you can see how much it really costs.

Answer 8

Compared to not being a veg*an it is cheaper, it all depends on the food you eat, how frequent you eat, and where you live. If you buy a lot of processed and pre-packaged foods it is going to be. But if you eat natural and whole foods it is cheaper since you things like beans and grains can easily be found cheap especially in bulk. You also -all animal products, which animal products are greatly expensive, so in reality it is cheaper. Just eat the processed and pre-packaged foods sparingly.

Some tips:

-Cook your own food at home, it is always cheaper

-Buy in bulk

-Buy local and at Farmers Markets

-Buy frozen vegetables instead, they tend to be cheaper

-Do not buy processed veggie meats and products, they tend to be expensive

Good food that is (normally) cheaper than animal products and essential: frozen vegetables, fresh fruits, bulk nuts, dried beans, shelf-stable plant milks, bulk quinoa, oatmeal, bulk whole grains and pastas, bulk nutrional yeast, bulk TVP, wheat gluten, tofu, ready/easy make cheap boxed food such as couscous, rices, falafel, etc such brands as Fanatic Foods, TastyBite, Uncle Bens, Ore-Ida (has great hash browns and other pre-made potatoes that can easily be cooked and last a while), etc.

Links to check out:

http://www.tryveg.com/cfi/toc/?v=07budge...

http://urbanvegan.blogspot.com/2008/01/2...

http://community.livejournal.com/cheapve...

http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2006issue2/...

Answer 9

It doesn't have to be expensive. While the fake meats and specialty non-dairy products are on the pricey side, they aren't necessary. You can be healthy on a diet consisting of fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, and grains.



There are lots of cheap vegetarian and vegan protein sources. Beans, lentils, sunflower seeds, and tofu are some examples. According to MSN Money: "If you drop red meat, poultry and fish from your diet, you'll find plant proteins cheaper than the equivalent amount of animal protein."

Here is a list of vegan meal ideas for people who are on a budget:

http://www.tryveg.com/cfi/toc/?v=07budge...

Answer 10

Goodness no! Meat costs so much money... its far cheaper being a veggie. You will probably spend a bit to get a couple base ingredients, mainly spices, but after that a lot of your diet will probably contain beans which are incredibly cheap (like $3 for a weeks worth). Add some veggies and you are talking much much cheaper than the alternative.  

Answer 11

If you buy the frozen substitutes than yes. But if you buy more of the fresh fruts and veggies, rice, pastas, beans- it may actually be less expensive or the same. Think about it, the money youd save on meats, that are about 5-6 dollars a package and only make one meal. You could spend on a bunch of veggies or beans or such. And they will go much further than that one pack of meat will.  

Answer 12

If you buy all of the faux meats, cheeses, and other products it is.  If you stick to basic vegetables, grains, rice, fruit, and beans it's not.  If a famine ever fell over this country I think the vegetarians and vegans would better be able to handle it.  We know how to get our nutrition without meat.

Meat will always be more expensive than everything else because the animals have to eat vegetables.

Answer 13

It depends. My supermarket often has chicken for sale under $1/lb - sometimes as low as $0.69/lb. Ham and pork roasts are also often on sale for about $1/lb. At Smart & Final, I can get a whole brisket of beef for $1.89/lb, and it makes a whole lot of pot roast, etc. (I cut it up into 2 or 3 lb pieces and freeze it.)

Lately peaches and nectarines (which are in season!) have been running $1.89/lb (and you're paying for the pits, too!.) Lettuce is $1.49 a head, green peppers are $2.99/lb, etc. Onions, for heaven's sake, cost almost $1/lb and I pay $1 apiece for grapefruit.

On the other hand, dried beans tend to run under $1/lb, and they gain weight when you cook them. Same is true of rice and many pastas.

I just bought a huge watermelon for $2.99 - probably 25 lb. Not terribly nutritive, but I will enjoy it.

Answer 14

It depends, if you are living off of veggie burgers and fake meats yes. If you eat things like frozen veggies, fruits, tofu, rice, etc it won't be.