109 | Save Money Eating Plant-Based - Don’t Make This Mistake on Your Grocery Shop!

Are you wanting to add more vegetables and fruits to your plates, but wonder if you can afford it? Right now, you’re already spending quite a bit on groceries weekly, mainly on meats, eggs, and processed foods. Yes, you’re also buying carrots, apples, and other produce items, but it’s not a lot at the moment. But the rising food prices, including those in the fresh produce department, have gotten you worried. Maybe you’re thinking, “Things are going to get WAY more expensive if I eat plant-based and start buying more fruits and veggies!”

 

Well, it doesn’t have to be. Eating plant-based doesn’t need to cost you an ‘arm and a leg’…unless of course you go about buying plant-based foods the wrong way. In this episode, I want to tell you about a KEY mistake that many people often make – specifically in the fresh produce department – which can end up costing you quite a bit over time. So if you’re wanting to save on food dollars but still nourish your body with health-boosting fruits and veggies, grab your ear buds and join me inside this episode. I’ll meet you there!

 

 

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[Plant Based Shopping, Plantbased, Smart Produce Hacks, Plant Based Diet, Money-Saving Supermarket Tips, Grocery Budget Tips, Smart Shopper Tips, Transition Tips, Plant-Based Eating on a Budget, Eat Healthy, Live Healthier, Reduce Disease]

Episode Transcript

(00:01):
Are you wanting to add morevegetables and fruits to your plates,
but wonder if you can afford it?
Right now, you're already spendingquite a bit on groceries, weekly, mainly
on meats, eggs, and processed foods.
Yes.
You're also buying carrots,apples, and other produce items,
but not a lot at the moment.

(00:22):
But the rising food prices,including those in the fresh produce
department, have gotten you worried.
Maybe you're thinking, "Things aregoing to get way more expensive
if I eat plant-based and startbuying more fruits and vegetables!"
Well, it doesn't have to be.
Eating plant-based doesn't need tocost you an arm and a leg, unless

(00:43):
of course you go about buyingplant-based foods the wrong way.
In this episode, I want to tell youabout a key mistake that many people
often make, specifically in the freshproduce department, which can end up
costing you quite a bit over time.
So, if you are wanting to save onfood dollars, but still nourish your

(01:03):
body with health boosting fruitsand veggies, grab your earbuds
and join me inside this episode.
I'll meet you there!
Welcome to the Plant BasedEating Made Easy Podcast.
I'm your host, Anna Tseng, plant-basedRegistered Dietitian and Transition Coach.
Hi Friend, do you want to regain yourhealth with plant-based eating but feel

(01:27):
overwhelmed and lost about how to do it?
Do you feel it'll be hard to changeyour meat-heavy diet and impossible
with working, running the home,or chasing after the grandkids?
If so, you're in the right place.
Here you'll find simple strategies,clear nutrition guidance and
practical tips to help you thriveplant-powered with more energy.

(01:48):
So, if you're ready to ditchthe guesswork and transform
your health the stress-free way.
Cozy up now with a hot cup of tea orlisten while you walk and let me show
you how doable plant-based eating can be.
Let's do this!
I want to take a moment first tospotlight and thank a listener

(02:09):
whose Apple ID is JerseySavvy.
Her five-star review of the PlantBased Eating Made Easy podcast
left me nearly speechless.
She wrote, " God sent Anna.
Thanks to Anna.
I'm completely plant-based.
I wasn't confident in thebeginning until I found Anna.

(02:29):
Thanks to her educational podcast andmy ability to email her questions,
I'm able to find answers to all myquestions and issues., 60 pounds lost.
No more blood pressure meds, fattyliver gone A1C at a normal level.
Arthritis issues at a minimumand more importantly, energy."

(02:52):
Wow.
Thank you, JerseySavvy.
I'm completely blown away by yourfeedback and so deeply encouraged.
Thank you for taking the time to writethis review, to share with me how
this podcast and eating plant-basedhas changed your health, but more
than that, turned around your life.
I'm ecstatic to hear that yourblood pressure and blood sugars

(03:15):
have now normalized and that youno longer have fatty liver and have
less pain, but more energy as well.
It makes what I continue to doin keeping this podcast going to
support you and others so worth it.
Friend, help me support morepeople like JerseySavvy and let's
change the world, transforminghealth and lives one at a time.

(03:39):
Please support this podcast by leavinga rating and review on Apple Podcasts.
If you have an Apple device,find the Apple podcast app icon.
It's a purple square with white circles.
Open it.
Then search for 'PlantBased Eating Made Easy'.
Once there, scroll all the way downpast the five star symbols, then click

(04:00):
on write a review, leave a star rating,write your review, and then tap 'Send'.
Tell me how this podcast is helpingyou in your plant-based diet transition
and journey towards the best health.
Thank you for supportingthe podcast in this way.
Now let's dive into today's topic.

(04:21):
It's a given that food pricesare increasing all around us
and we're all feeling the pinch.
Every year we notice the prices on ourgrocery cart staples rise by a little
bit, and sometimes a lot due to a varietyof factors like rising manufacturing
costs, short supply and sudden outbreakslike the birth flu virus, H5N1.

(04:45):
This bird flu virus has caused theprice of eggs in the US to more
than double in price per dozen in2025 compared to 2022 due to the
loss of millions of egg-laying hens.
It's times like this though, that makeseating plant-based a real opportunity,
not only to truly better our health, butalso to save hard-earned shopping dollars.

(05:10):
But in order to enjoy plant-basedeating on a budget for the long run,
there are smart money-saving hacksand strategies you need to adopt, and
the way you shop needs to also change.
Now, I don't just mean a changein the actual foods you buy, I
also mean a change in the way youplan your grocery shopping trip.

(05:30):
Here's what I mean.
There's a key mistake I see many peoplemake when shopping and it's costing them
money, often without them realizing it.
It may not be a huge amount initially,but over time, with each trip, the money
loss can add up to be quite substantial.
And it's this, it's not budgetingenough time to spend on buying

(05:55):
plant-based foods, but especiallyin the fresh produce department.
I get it.
Life is busy and often we don't havemuch time to spend at the store,
much less the produce department.
We're in and out, grabbing theurgent items on our list, and then
heading to the checkout line andto the next activity of the day.

(06:17):
Often the fresh produce section endsup being one of the last stops on
our way out, and we're barely lookingat what we're putting into our cart.
In fact, by that point we mightalready have to deal with cranky
toddlers or tweens, and so onlyhave five minutes left to grab the
remaining 10 produce items on our list.
Have you been there?

(06:38):
I know I have!
But Friend, if you really want to savemoney on groceries, especially when
you move to plant-based eating, here'sone important thing you need to do.
Really try to allocate more timein the fresh produce department.
And if you're tight on time, thiswould mean less time elsewhere in

(06:59):
the store, like in the snacks andprocessed packaged vegan foods aisle.
Here are a few key reasons why.
In the Fresh Produce section, I foundthat supermarket staff are busy and
sometimes signs are not all that clear.
Not everything is properly labeledand sometimes wrongly labeled.

(07:20):
There can even be signs showingpromotions, but the promotion
period has already ended.
And, I've found this.
Sometimes there can be a promotionon certain fruits and vegetables,
like a bag of mandarin orangesor a head of romaine lettuce.
But then, when you stop to look at thefine print and compare unit prices, you

(07:42):
find that the single oranges themselvesor another leafy green is of better value.
So, if you're just running in andgrabbing produce off the shelves,
looking at the bright yellow and redpromotional signs and larger texts,
but not reading the fine print, youcan end up losing money in the bank.
You'll likely miss out on potentiallygreat deals and could even grab

(08:03):
something wrong and shortchange yourself.
Here's an example of thathappening in our own family.
We like to use rutabagas, which are alsocalled Swede, in an Asian noodle soup.
Well, one day we ran out of it, so I gavemy husband a list of items to buy at the
store, along with a few other errands,like returning books at the library.

(08:28):
Well, he finished all theerrands, then came home.
It, was only when I was unpackingthe grocery bag, though, that I
noticed that he had brought backturnips instead of rutabagas.
Now that's an easy mistake to makebecause both are root vegetables and
have a purplish tinge on the outside.
But money-wise, thissimple mistake did cost us.

(08:51):
One reason I like using rutabagasis that I find they are relatively
low cost, yet are nutrient-packed.
More on this in another episode.
But turnips are actually prettycostly in our local grocery stores.
In fact, if you compare the unitprices per pound, turnips are more than
double in price compared to rutabagas.

(09:14):
The rutabagas only cost $1.19cents per pound, but the turnips
cost $2.49 cents per pound.
So if my husband had hurried less andlooked at produce signs more, perhaps
this mistake might not have happened.
This incident might be a small one, butI hope it shows you how important it

(09:36):
is to slow down a little when you'reselecting fruits, vegetables, and other
fresh produce, to budget a little moretime to spend in the produce department
the next time you grocery shop.
This way, you can truly maximizethe available shopping dollars you
have on fresh fruits and vegetables.
It'll give you more time to look atproduce signs more carefully so you

(09:58):
can choose better priced produce, avoidunnecessary mistakes (like what my husband
did), and to select the fresh fruitsand vegetables more carefully so they
are fresher and can last longer at home.
There have been times when we broughthome a bag of apples or pears from
the store and then realized there wasa rotten apple or pear in the bag.

(10:19):
But we hadn't realized it when we chosethe bags and purchased them because
we didn't take the time to look morecarefully inside the bag to check that
all the fruits were in good condition.
Yet it's such a simple thing todo and will give you that much
more enjoyment on what you buy.
So today we looked at a big mistakemany make when going grocery shopping

(10:42):
that can cost you money in your wallet.
It's rushing through the store and notsetting aside enough time to choose your
fruits and vegetables more carefullyin the fresh produce department.
Over time, not changing thisway of shopping can really
cause a drain on your wallet.
So don't rush.

(11:02):
It's not worth it when you'replant-based grocery shopping.
Now, here's an action step you can take.
Reflect on the amount of time youusually spend at the grocery store
and at what point you tend tostart shopping for fresh produce.
Is it at the beginning, middle,or end of the shopping trip?
Then think about how much time you wouldhave on your next shopping trip, and make

(11:26):
sure to budget in enough time to spend inthe Fresh Produce department to get the
items you want from your grocery list.
You may need to change up theway you shop and start in the
fresh produce section first.
Whatever it is, just make sure togive yourself adequate time to truly
buy well-priced and quality produce.

(11:48):
Remember, this is just one strategyto help you start and stay plant-based
eating on a budget and enjoyyour new plant-powered lifestyle.
Stay tuned for more!
Thank you for listening to the PlantBased Eating Made Easy Podcast.
If this podcast has helped you,please rate and leave a written

(12:09):
review on the Apple PodcastApp or iTunes to let me know.
Nothing will lift me up more than toread your review and see how this podcast
has made a difference in your life.
I also pick reviews to read on this showso your review could be one of them.
Come connect with me in my freeFacebook community group, Beginners
for Plant Based Diet Success.

(12:31):
Just go to bit.ly/pbdietsuccess.
That's B I T dot L Y forwardslash pb diet success.
You can also subscribe and followthis podcast to get notified
when a new episode goes live.
Signing off now, this is Anna, andI wish you the best health always.