On Mon, 31 May 2010 11:28:13 -0400, Ed Pawlowski wrote:

> "Steve Freides" > wrote
>>
>> I guess it depends on a lot of things, among them what sort of prepared
>> foods you're talking about. There are certainly some cheap things out
>> there. But in my part of the world, the difference between buying frozen,
>> breaded fish and going to the seafood store and/or Whole Foods and buying
>> fresh is considerable - just one example.
>>
>> -S-
>
> So you pay $5 a pound for breadcrumbs that you can make yourself for
> pennies. Yes, some prepared stuff does sell cheap because of the economy of
> mass production, but it is often lower quality. Reading the ingredient
> list is often like reading the inventory of a chemical plant. Canned fruit
> is OK when that is all that is available, but a fresh peach is far superior
> in flavor.
>
> Most people could cut their food bill by 25% or more if they took the time
> to prepare fresh foods and do a little extra work. Like buying a whole pork
> loin for $1.99 instead of thin sliced pork in the meat case for $4.99.
> Grating their own cheese.

but part of that is having food money to invest for the long term. i'm not
saying it can't be done even by poor people, but it's not always as easy as
you make it sound.

your pal,
blake