What do you think? Health food and being a wise steward
Kansas Milkmaid posted last week asking whether cheap food is really cheap or not (Part 1 and Part 2). She had a lot of good thoughts and I've been meaning to post on this for a few weeks as it's something my brain has been mulling on.
As you know, we try to eat healthfully - at least as much as we can afford at this point in our lives. We've recently switched over to buying all our milk from a local dairy and this Summer/Fall bought a lot of produce from a local farm (Both which we've found to be almost the same price or less expensive than shopping at our local grocery store!). While neither of these places are certified organic, we really love to support local farms and we personally feel that we'd rather buy something which supports our area agriculture and farm families than certified organic which has been shipped or planed in from far away. We eventually hope to grow/produce as much of our own food as we can, but it will probably be a few years before we are able to have a home with a large yard and space for a bountiful garden, fruit trees, and chickens and goats.
As "guardians of our home," I think we wives have a responsibility to not only be good stewards of our family's bodies by not filling them up with junk and chemicals all the time, but we also need to be good stewards of our husband's hard-earned money. There have been times when we couldn't afford much at all, and we most certainly couldn't afford anything organic unless it was reduced produce at the supermarket. We were careful to do the best we could by making everything from scratch we could, not eating many processed foods at all, staying away from food coloring and artifical sweeteners, and eating fresh fruits and vegetables (buying what we could at the Farmer's Market). I'm sure we didn't eat very healthfully by some people's standards since we bought most of our groceries at Aldi, but you know what? God took care of our health through that time period. And I think that's where we must find the balance. It is our responsibility to do the best we can with what God has given us, and we can entrust the rest to Him. After all, no matter what we eat or don't eat, He is ultimately responsible for our health and well-being.
What do you think? Local or organic? Neither because you could care less? How do you achieve the balance between feeding your family healthfully and not breaking your budget? Insights?
posted by Crystal Paine at 11:42 AM
22 Comments:
Definitely local. It's better for the environment (because it doesn't have to be shipped) and buying it supports your community. It's cheaper than organic, but usually more nutritious than factory-farmed produce. Everybody wins.
Good for you for thinking about these kinds of things. (by the way, have you started recycling?)
Hard question. Either way, I will end up feeling guilty.
Guilty for not being the perfect wife/mom and feeding my family on perfectly healthy foods.
OR
Guilty for using up money that I know my husband wishes I wouldn't use, though he's not a complainer.
Which to choose? I have been trying and trying and trying so hard reduce our food spending and still feed us enough. I had to quit Angel Food boxes because the food in them is just totally processed and yukky. But I still do Aldis shopping, because honestly I can't beat their prices, even with coupons. We have no way to grow our own food. Farmers markets are still more expensive than Aldis, at least in our city, and they're seasonal, to boot. I heard Trader Joes is cheaper than Whole Foods Markets, so I checked it out, and that may be true but it's still way more expensive than we can afford on a regular basis.
I don't have an answer. I would *love* to go completely organic. I cannot do it at this time. :(
Well, we're truly blessed. We have lots of places near us to buy local AND organic. The farmers market in the summer that is 10 minutes from my house is 80% organic (certified or not but still grown using organic standards). We also subscribe to an organic CSA.
My husband and I discussed the organic vs. expenses thing after we had our son and he decided that buying some things organic was more important to him than saving money. So, we try to buy as much organically grown produce and dairy as possible. I'm very blessed to have my husbands blessing to spend a bit more to get food I feel better with.
We also both agree that using tons of chemicals to grow produce isn't cheaper than organic in the long run. It's not just our health, it's what those chemicals are doing to God's green earth. Destroying soil. Leeching into water supplies, etc. So just something else to think about.
I'm not sure about this one. We are told that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Ghost, but I think that particular scripture is in the context of committing sexual sins, not what we eat.
In America, we have so many choices about food, in other countries, they are happy to have any kind of food, let alone, having choices.
In the sermon on the Mount, Jesus says to take no thought what you shall eat or wear because He takes care of the sparrows and clothes the lillies of the field, and we are of much more value than either of those.
In the law, they were given very strict dietary guidelines, which I think still contain wisdom for today because they are God's laws.
In Proverbs 31, the virtuous woman brings her food from afar.
I would say, if it's important to you, stay as close to what God made and not what is man made, and be moderate in all things. Don't let nutrition consume your thoughts and lifestyle to the extent that you forget the weightier matters. Our bodies are a temporary dwelling. Our lives are but a vapor. I would hope that when I leave my earthly dwelling, whether broken in body or well, that I had spent so much effort and time in sowing to the Spirit, that it had a life-changing effect on those who see me go. What a day of rejoicing that will be!!
I understand this one and thought she had some very good points in her posts. I say this because we were very, very poor for awhile and although we had food it is was not healthy food and our health paid for it in many ways. Also, though I think you have to sometimes be thankful for what you have and not long for something else you cannot afford and not pay your bills because you are buying alot of food.
We are quite poor in most people's eyes and there is no way we can afford to buy all organic food.
Some things though I have done which is alot more work than some people want to do. I live in a northern state, so we have a short growing season, yet even though I live in a trailer park with very limited space I grew my own small garden and got lots of tomatoes, zucchuni, and other herbs. I also went to the farmer;s market, the local fruit stands and bought fruit and vegetables cheaper there and did not have buy anything all summer from the store like produce. I also was given boxes of green tomatoes which I ripened and I have jars of canned and bags of frozen tomatoes to last me until next summer.
We cannot afford organic meat, but we do not eat alot of meat. I also try to get organic milk and eggs when I can. I can buy wheat and grind that cheaply for flour also.
otherwise I just pray over our food and pray that God will bless it and protect us from harm as with all things. I do the best I can and leave the rest to God. We have to survive and when I decided before to not eat anything that is not healthy, I ended up just not eating which is not healthy also!
I would feel guilty spending as much money as they charge for all organic food, so I think by working hard and growing your own is one of the best ways. Raise a cow, or chickens if you have a place. Yes, they are alot of work, but it is so much better for you!
I think as I know better, I do better. I have learned to cook from scratch, which has gotten rid of a majority of the "processed food issue" as well as decreased our food spending as well. Once we started spending less, I used the extra $ to buy grass fed beef and hormone/antibiotic free milk products and just wash my produce thoroughly.
It is VERY important to me that my husband feels like he provides very well for us. At first, the whole food budget thing was frustrating for me. But after I quit focusing on myself, I started having alot of fun! I knew what God had given us was plenty, I just had to figure out how he wanted me to use it.
Once I started cooking from scratch, I was very surprised at just how much can be made with basic inexpensive ingredients! A very encouraging and inspiring place to learn more about cooking from scratch is Tammysrecipes.com
I think the "milkmaid" was right when she said people will buy cheap food and keep their cell phones, internet, satellite etc. Sometimes people have other priorities, or just don't realize what is a true necessity and what isn't.
Whatever you choose, I believe that God does not want us taking for granted his protection and ultimate authority.
My favorite verses on this subject are Matthew 6:25-34 and Proverbs 3:5-8. Yes, we are to be good stewards, and we may feel better by eating healthy food; but, do we tend to give God the credit or the food?
The only thing that bothers me with discussions like these is they can become legalistic and if one cannot afford organic or does not have access to local produce, etc., (or whatever the situation)it could leave them feeling inadequate or possibly guilty.
God is in control. We must put our TOTAL trust in Him and not worry about what we eat.
The most important thing you said in your post is how you ate what you could afford, and God took care of you. That is the bottom line--God took care of your family.
Through my third pregnancy, I was very emotionally unstable and we ate out a lot. I ate McDonalds at least once a day. That child was my healthiest baby!! God is an Awesome God for taking care of me and my family!
Proverbs 3:7,8 "Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones."
Val
As most people have said, we do what we can within our means. When our daughter was born, my husband and I decided that it was important to us that our children primarily get good meet and dairy products, so I did a ton of research and with the help of another family in our church I was able to find local farmers who sell grass-fed organic beef, pork, and chickens. I bought 1/8th of a cow, 1/8th of a pig, and 19 chickens, and I am careful to use the meat so that it lasts us all year. I find this way I actually saved money, and plus by buying in bulk, we also got cuts of meat we had never been able to afford before. This only works because we have a freezer (which we got on sale in order to do this with the meat, and it has paid for itself already in just one year).
We also have a cow share and get one gallon per week of raw organic milk. We just limit the amount of milk we drink and I also make yogurt out of it, so that we can afford it. It's more than store milk, but far less than even Walmart charges for organic milk.
As far as produce, I get what I can when I can afford it. I found that our Costco sells big bags of frozen organic green beans for less than conventional ones at our grocery. I have not been successful in finding local farmers that use organic techniques (I don't need the farm to be certified organic, I know that is a costly process, but I like to know that they farm with organic and sustainable practices). I have found a few, but their amounts are limited. At farmer's markets I am reluctant to spend three times as much as the grocery store just to buy local if the farmer is just farming with conventional techniques and pesticides like the agribusiness folks do.
Since I have been staying home this year, I have been able to make most things from scratch, and also use coupons and sales more efficiently, so even though we now do all organic meat and milk, we have still cut our grocery budget by about 20%. We're working on cutting it further.
I also agree with the posters who mentioned that ultimately we need to trust God with our family for all things. I think God honors our desires to be good stewards (of our money and our environment and our health), and the Bible says that if we ask for wisdom, God will give it to us.
I try to buy kosher meat as opposed to organic. I feel that its processed in a cleaner manner yet cheaper then organic. (Turkey and hot dogs are the best buy.)
I use only real butter. I have the space for a giant garden but had most of my crop eaten by deer and other critters. Our farmers market is the same price as our grocery store and they use chemicals. The best bet here are people who sell garden vegetables from their front yards.
I try to use honey in place of sugar as much as I can. I don't buy white bread and the only cereal we eat is oatmeal or shredded wheat (non frosted). I guess I'm somewhere in the middle.
Crystal:
I think you have to be wary of organic food. Not all organic food is truly natural and healthy. We are not organic but biblical stewards of the land and animals God has given us. Try to find folks locally who practice biblical stewardship of the produce and I think you are set. Really most of the current struggles I try to highlight on my blog are related to the woes of not practicing biblical stewardship. I believe that most of the current crisis we face is because animals and land is treated terribly due to profit as the prime focus.
Also I would encourage anyone who feels prices are too high to seek a bartering arrangement from local farmers as well. Many of the people I know and us included do bartering arrangements. I think housewives have so much to offer in bartering too. So just because a food is high don't rule it out of your budget.The nice thing about getting food from a local family farmer is that there is much more flexibility in business practices.
I do advocate for everyone to make wise choices and strive for healthy living and eating, but there is no perfect achievement by any means. We can only do the best we can with what we have.
Excellent points, Crystal.
I think it can be challenging for those on a tight budget to buy alot of organic foods. I believe that it is good to support local businesses and I believe that common sense dictates that a bag of apples is a better buy over a bag of chips for sure! I believe it is important to say a blessing over your food because in reality it is very difficult to eat super healthy when the majority of our food source is contaminated with pesticides, etc. I find that buying whole foods (ex. box of pasta, regular cheese, milk) versus kraft dinner, etc is cheaper and healthier in the long run. Good article Crystal!
I also wanted to add that some supporters of the "whole foods" health movement are blatant New-Agers, which is contrary to the christian faith. It is important not to place physical health over spiritual health in being caught up in ones eating routine.
Crystal,
What a great post, and for me, a timely one!
We are fortunate to live in an area where we have lots of choices, so we are actually able to buy organic from a co-op that pulls its orders from mostly local sources. However, I love shopping at this old farmer's market in season that I've been going to since I was a child. It's not organic either, but the market is right there on their farm and you can see what they're doing to grow their garden year round. I think being able to actually see where your food is coming from is where I'm most comfortable...one day we hope to grow our own, but until then, we just make our decision based on all the current variables. Sometimes we can do organic, sometimes we can't. But when the farmer's market is open, we can always do that.
If you do your research, there's definitely something to be said about organic. But our ultimate trust should be in the Lord and He requires us to be good and faithful stewards of all our resources. You've hit the nail on the head w/ this post Crystal...thanks!
Blessings dear,
Amy B.
It's valuable not to let the adversary of God and His children discourage. We are God's workmanship even in the provision to eat to His glory. Just as He doesn't immediately make us perfect in practice with spiritual matters upon imputing His righteousness to us, He also doesn't make us perfect in practice with what we eat. We live in a fallen world and must simply listen to His voice in all things including the physical wellbeing, right? He doesn't want us being consumed by ill health because of poor choices nor does He want us anxious over good being at our hand alone. What He wants us to do, we can certainly find Him providing in His perfect way and time. Trust Him. He's weaving a beautiful tapestry with each of us even with desires of the heart that ultimately points to the breadth and depth of real Life(full of peace and joy) being in Him.
God is good.
I look at healthy eating as an investment in the future. I can't afford to buy all organic foods. There are certain foods that I think are important to buy locally or organic while other things I'm not as concerned about. Its not perfect but I'm doing what I can for our health.
I'm already missing my little square foot garden. It was our first year and while we didn't have a fantastic yield, it was so nice to walk out the back door and pick something fresh. Just as soon as the holidays are over, I'm going to start making my garden plans for this upcoming spring.
My husband and I try to eat organic as much as we can afford. We also get raw milk from a local dairy and try to buy meats that are hormone, antibiotic free.
We believe that it is important for many reasons. While we trust God's sovereignty very strongly, we also feel like we have a responsibility to make wise choices.
It IS hard to spend more money on organic or locally grown food. But we feel the benefits out weigh that.
One thing that I think, we as Americans, can have a hard time with, is eating simply. I love to cook and would want to have "special" dinners every night. But when you are trying to buy quality food, that is really expensive.
I was recently reading a book series by Ralph Moody. He writes about his life growing up in the turn of the century. I noticed a few things about their eating habits. First off, they were, at times, hard off and didn't have a lot of extra money. Because of that, it seemed that their diet would consist of beans, bread, milk, eggs and meats for special occassions. They also ate a lot of the same food.
It wasn't super fancy, and it was a bit repetitive. But from his perspective, his mom was the best cook!
Since we don't have a lot of money, it has helped to try to think about eating simply with quality food.
My mother used to fondly talk of having many a meal of potatoes and buttermilk during the depression; her dad found work on a farm and this was the pay the farmer could offer. An attitude of gratitude can make a glass of water and piece of bread precious to a dear soul thirsty and hungry.
Maybe we've made eating what God packages in nature too complex at times; the simplicity of cooked grits versus cornbread, fried corn mush rather than pancakes, cooked wheat cereal versus elaborate breads, fresh fruit rather than baked fruit pies, cornmeal coating for fried fish versus batter dipped, etc. is a welcomed change and less time consuming, too. We ate that way when on a rotation diet becuse of food allergies...simplistic yet nutritious and tasty.
I grow herbs and tomatoes myself - I started them when they were little on the windowsill of my kitchen. I managed to have a tomato plant and 8 different herbs there.
As they've gotten bigger and I've transplanted them I can no longer fit all of them there - so the tomato plant (by far the biggest) moved onto my front porch. It really doesn't take much space to grow plants - I'll probably get a few more soon and grow them even when I move. And I'll have much less space then.
OK, I just typed a whole comment and it erased it! I have struggled with this over the years and have gone back and forth on buying organic depending on our budget. In CO we had organic milk delivered to our home, but that isn't an option here and the organic milk in the stores is too expensive.
I am reading a book right now called One Good Apple by Cathrine Paladino. I got it in the children's section to read to my kids. It explains in very simple clear terms all the hazards of pesticides - to vegetables, animals, the environment, etc. It is a very scary book and my kids don't want me to finish it, they are so scared by it. BUT I need to read it to see all the things that are harming our bodies and nature. It is a great book and I want to finish it tonight.
After reading this book I will be trying to figure out a way to get more organic back into our diet.
I have never commented before. I hope to not be to long winded. This is a topic that has been also on my mind. I am currently working full-time. My DH and I have lots of student loan debt. I know I am not feeding us nearly as well as I would if I wasn't working.
My job does not pay very well. I work in a daycare. We are unable to have children of our own and hope to adopt some day. I enjoy being with the children very much, but know I am needed at home more. I hope and pray to be a stay at home wife in the coming new year.
I could post volumes on the things I see at work that may not be against the rules, but should not happen to a child. I won't because that will definately be making this long winded:-)
I believe a balance in cost and nutrition is needed. I read a book recently that said every dollar spent on preventative health(including good food) now will save seven in the future. I know that red peppers are much more healthy than their green cousins so even though they are expensive I am buying more red these days.
My dear father in law passed away this summer from cancer. He worked for a company that makes processed food. There were always lots of their foods in the house. The company was very kind to the family during his illness so I hate to be unkind, but I know their food was partially responsible for his sickness.
Well, I go for local in the summer; farmer's produce stands are full of good quality foods! Organic is a plus, but I don't go searching for it.
With the cancer 'legacy' in my family, my attitude is this...eventually, I am going to die. I realize this. One way or another, I will no longer be on Earth but with my Heavenly Creator. I don't want to waste what precious time I have searching out something that at this point in time is a HUGE drain on our resources. My husband doesn't care if it is local, organic, or from our neighborhood Pick N Save. I try and avoid eating boxed foods as much as possible, but beyond that, honestly....?
I just don't care.
I'm not gonna try and be a perfect wife/mother. I'll enjoy the time I'm blessed with and use what resources I've been given to help those that are less fortunate as opposed to spending 15 bucks on a roast when a 6 dollar one will do.
(But I really do love a good loaf of organic whole wheat bread!)
The other thing I had to realize too was what one paster said earlier, we are going to die from something...... I think we can make it better by eating as healthy as we possibly can when we can, but I had some friends who ate extremally healthy. They had a huge garden with no pesticides, raw milk, and ate no processed sugars, tons of fruits and vegetables, simple food, long walks every day, yet she died of stomach cancer. Another friend, there was no apparent reason why she would get cancer, yet at 26 years old she had third stage non-hodgkins lymphoma. The doctors said she was the healthiest cancer patient they had seen! They did not use pesticides either, but anyhow, I think God has a plan for us. We can take care of ourselves and feel good that we are healthy and not going to die and be like the fool who stored up things in the scripture and die that night!
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