This has held us accountable to two of Barbara Kingsolver's standards, eating locally and seasonally. It has been neat to see our bodies becoming more intune with the earth. It has also been fun to try to incorporate Japanese turnips and mass amounts of swiss chard into our diet.

Our farmer has recently started a meat CSA. We do not have room in our small apartment for 20lbs of meat/month, nor do we consume anywhere close to that amount of meat in a month. However, if you have a meat loving family and a deep freeze this is a great way to save money on organic meats!

We personally buy meat as needed from our CSA farmer, the local farmer's market when in season, and the local organic grocery store. We get our eggs from a neighbor of our CSA farmer [we just saw the "fresh eggs" sign and knocked on their door!] and we also get raw milk from a local dairy farmer.

great book and great work everyone!

It is hard to remember that pasture-raised meat was not really available in the 90′s. I think it is because I was a vegetarian because I didn’t want to eat meat that was raised in factories.

Around 2001 or so, my body said, “No more tofu!” I reluctantly started eating meat again after a couple of doctors had told me it would help me. I felt so great after my first chicken salad – I couldn’t believe it.

I ended up losing about 20 or so pounds, I think all due to not eating soy anymore and eating meat again. But I did start eating humanely raised and organic when possible, meat.

I didn’t start eating beef or lamb until a few years ago. And shortly after that, I learned about grass-fed beef and lamb and the huge difference between it and corn-fed.

I now get a 20 lb box of 1 lb packs of ground grass-fed beef from a local farmer and split it with a friend of mine. It is about $3.50 a lb which is awesome compared to the Common Market where it is $7.00 a lb. In september he had a special where it ended up being less than $3 a lb.

So it pays to research local farmers and to ask about bulk discounts!

thanks again Wardeh!
Sarah
.-= Sarah Schatz – menus for limited diets´s last blog post… Why a weekly menu planner makes a great holiday gift for someone on a limited diet =-.

I know people make the argument that the “unclean” meats are less healthy and regardless, we should avoid them. It seems such a personal choice, and not able to be decided clearly. I can’t fault anyone for choosing either side. Certainly, if you don’t feel well when you eat pork, listening to your body tells you more than anything.

Regarding local food and how much we are able to purchase/find – when we compare ourselves to others, we humans think we fall short! So once again, we need not strive to do what others are doing, but strive to glorify God as best we can – as He has equipped us. My family has a long way to go to reach an “ideal” and we may never get there, but what makes me very, very glad is that we all can encourage each other and share the journey with each other. God bless you all!

Where I live, locally raised meat is the most expensive choice. Whole Foods sometimes has sales to compete with the factory-farmed stores, and their chicken is often reasonable, but it’s still pricey. We used to buy all of our meat from WF, but our financial circumstances make it hard to do right now, so we have been buying some meat from regular supermarkets, as much as I hate it. There really is a big difference in chicken quality; I bought some Perdue chicken because it was 29 cents a pound, but it is disgusting quality meat, with too much fat and a weird texture.

I would like to buy a quarter cow; there are farms near me where buying a whole/partial animal really is reasonable, but even some of those are pricey, like $6/lb hanging weight, which works out to something more like $8/lb or something for the actual meat! Sure, some of it is steaks, but some is hamburger and whatnot. I’d also like to find somewhere to sell us a whole lamb, since we like lamb meat a lot, and it’s hard to get things like lamb livers.
.-= Rebecca´s last blog post… Menu Plan Monday – Week of 12/7/2009 =-.

I don’t think the cost structure will shift at stores like Whole Foods. I read that same thinking 12 or so years ago when I read Marilu Henner’s book, and went organic. We were vegan for a while also, trying to stay away from bad stuff. We finally realized we would go broke if we continued to eat all organic. Prices have definately not come down in the last 12 years that I have been paying attention. But, like you, we have found ways of keeping costs down without having to shop at the expensive health food stores. Buying a whole cow, having our own eggs, buying grains in bulk, learning to garden, hopefully finding a close dairy source. We try to do what we can, but not make ourselves crazy in the process. We do live in a fallen world afterall.

Eating more and more like the gnowfglins way, though, makes grocery shopping easier. I purchase local produce, eggs and grains from Azure Standard, raw milk from a farmer, and beef and pork from a rancher. The meat is definitely better quality and cheaper than Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods. I’ve noticed, however, that farm fresh chickens are *not* cheaper than the chain stores, and I do buy chicken from Trader Joe’s.