Meat vs. vegetarian?

Question

OK, so I'm a woman with two kids and a husband, on one income, and money is very tight, needless to say. What I'm wondering is, why won't manufacturers of vegetarian food (Morningstar Farms, Boca, etc.) make their foods more "price friendly"? The same could be said for organic foods. Apparently it's better for you, but people like me can't afford it. For example: A 2 lb. bag of Banquet chicken nuggets is roughly $3.50 on sale. A tiny 8 oz. box of Morningstar farms veggie chick'n nuggets is $3.00. A coworker let me try one of her veggie nuggets, and really--I think it's better than the meat variety, but with the number of chicken nuggets my two toddlers eat, I can't afford it. Why can't they make them more affordable? Surely it can't cost THAT much more to harvest/process vegetables versus meat. Can someone please tell me why? They tell you don't eat meat--it's unhealthy for you, yet when you buy the vegetable based products, they're SO expensive. Help!

That's the problem right now...my kids (ages 3 and 2) will NOT eat really any vegetables (except for corn and peas, lol, which [I assume] other parents of toddlers can relate to). I could switch to legumes, leavy green vegs, etc. but if I did, I'd worry that they would eat even less food than they do now. Hopefully in the next few years, they'll learn to get used to what I make. Having toddlers is really difficult! :O)

Answer 1

Processed animal products are actually more expensive than processed vegetable products, but federal farm subsidies artificially lower costs. (see first link) That is why the tasty processed foods like veggie nuggets can never be as cheap as meat equivalents. f*'d up eh?

that said,

It is unfortunately often more labor intensive to make healthier and vegetarian foods, but this is not always the case. There will not be many inexpensive substitutes that are as easy to prepare as chicken nuggets, but you will be eating much healthier food.

I encourage you to research quick and easy vegetarian foods for children. If you are concerned about protein, don't be fooled! Lots of vegetables have protein and generally if you get enough calories, you'll be getting enough protein (second link). also look up "protein myth".

some quick ideas: mac n cheese, quesadillas (can add beans), nachos (try adding beans or veggie chili).

I could give you a chicken-y baked tofu cutlets recipe takes about 10 minutes prep and like an 45min-1hr to bake. let me know!

good luck

Answer 2

It's strange because a staple of the veger's arguments is that more crops are used to feed meat animals than are used to feed vegers. That it takes x amount more per animal.

So, if you factor in all of $$$ used to feed the chicken, plus then the cost of the chicken itself, it should cost MORE than what the veggie nuggets cost.

Some vegers will then say that the chickens are being fed garbage and etc...but then that debunks the animals use up more crops than vegers do argument. It's one or the other vegers. Not both.

Your best bet, is to eat mostly vegetables and not processed vegetable foods. Buy vegetables that are in season because they will be the cheapest. Supplement that with bean based dishes and be aware of the nutrients you are imbibing.

You said it yourself, the veggie nuggets would cost $12 for the same amount of the chicken nuggets. To be healthy, you shouldn't be eating either though. If you want meat, buy meat. If you want veges, buy veges. Prepare it yourself. The most unhealthy part of a meater's or a veger's diet is the already "prepared" foods. Which are also the more expensive of either diet.

Go to the meat section or the produce section and stay away from the freezer section.

Answer 3

The reason for the price difference is that the chicken nuggets are made from slaughterhouse waste which used to be thrown away before they had the technology to turn it into chicken nuggets. Forty years ago they did not exist.
So the cost of materials is nil . In fact they save money by not having to pay to dispose of the waste but package it and sell it to the public.
If you are buying processed vegetarian food you are still paying too much. Buy a couple of good vegetarian cook books and you can make all these things yourself from the raw fresh ingredients..
If you are not working you will have the time.
The reason children don't like vegetables is that they are not introduced to appetising recipes at an early age.

Answer 4

After going to college I realized that the world is affected by the problem of scarcity. It's difficult to produce vegetables and other healthy foods in large quantities. They have to grow for a certain period of time. On the other hand, meats can be grown quite easily by injecting animals and birds with hormones so that they can grow up unnaturally. There is plenty of unhealthy foods in production. But scarce healthy foods in production.

Answer 5

They need the money.

It takes more time to get the bad stuff out of the food, they need the money for the time workers put into making the foods. Also, that would be a lot better. I don't like to eat meat. I am pretty much a vegetarian. They should make it less money! I agree!!!

=]]

Answer 6

I believe it's due to the laws of supply and demand largely. These products target a very specific demographic, so their prices are higher as the healthier lifestyle is not as main stream as the fat rich foods. I know exactly what you mean though. Maybe if these items were more reasonable, they would become more mainstream. It's interesting that people who have a tighter budget are more apt to be overweight and unhealthy because the unfortunate reality is that the healthier the product, the more costly it tends to be.

Answer 7

first of all it's genetics that will play the major role. but i found as a vegan i've outlived everyone on my mother's side where i developed the same chronic condition that killed them. doctors praised my vegan lifestyle and all that blah blah... but i still have to take medications and maintain my healthy diet. and regiment, never forget that. but genetics are at play.... but eating healthy doesn't hurt. :D my problem also is... i'm allergic to animal fats... found that out the hard when when i was a toddler... so my parents through my doctors orders put me on a vegetarian diet... it helped considerably. i became vegan years and years later after finding out that i still had problems with some processed vegetarian foods.. seeing how most processed foods are jam packed with animal element.

Answer 8

One thing the "me" troll forgets is that meat and dairy are cheap because of subsidies. Also, crap, to put it simply, is also cheaper than quality ingredients, which most veggie nuggets have. Check the ingredients in the chicken nuggets and ingredients in the veggie nuggets and see which has more unpronounceable ingredients.

Now, you can get tofu pretty cheap at Whole Foods or Trader Joe's. I've gotten store-brand one-pound containers of tofu for 99 cents at WF. You could crumble the tofu (freeze and press first), coat them with seasoned flour, and fry them up. Or you can make fried tofu sticks.

Answer 9

Veggie "meats" are a luxury, not a necessity. If you want to be healthier (i'm not sure what your goal is) and/or go vegetarian, then you really wouldn't and shouldn't be living on fried foods like nuggets, even if they are vegetarian. Yes, they're a nice splurge, but they shouldn't be that large of a part of your diet that the price is a big deal.

Answer 10

You are right! Unfortunately vegetarianism is considered a fad. Even by the people who profit from them. I have tried to go Vegan 4 times in the last 5 months and am back to it again! The price isn't a real problem for me, but, it still bites! I'm not even pointing the finger at them ,who knows maybe it's just more difficult to package? But, on we go again. One more time.