There is this huge misunderstanding caused by the lack of information that going vegan will cost you a lot more money. Yes, it may be true, but only if you care about what you put into your body. You wouldn't (or are less willing to) have sex with someone with sexually transmitted infections, so why should you eat food laced with poison (pesticide)? Disclaimer: I am not saying that we should be afraid of people with STIs, I'm saying that we have to be aware of what/who we're involving ourselves with.
As a newbie vegan, I'm writing this to help inform you about the food that you put into your body and explain from an economics perspective why people think vegan food is expensive even when it's not.
Having graduated from college and having to prepare my own meals, I have started to learn more about produce and the ingredients that go into our foods. Did you know that the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a non-profit organization that helps people shop smarter, publishes an annual list of the 12 produce items which contain the highest amount of pesticide residue (even after washing)? Check it out here, and stay away from strawberries unless they are organic.
Vegans live off fresh vegetables and fruits, and it matters to most of us if they are laced with poison (pesticides). Think about it. If other living organisms (bugs, insects, etc) wouldn't come close to landing on that spinach, then why should you be putting it into your body? Most people eat their fruits raw, and vegans do, too, because we're not weird. Because of our consumption of raw fruits and vegetables, vegans are willing to pay an extra buck or two to purchase organically grown produce that we know are safe to put into our bodies.
Now you understand why going vegan could potentially be expensive: We care for our bodies and we eat organic, and certified organic produce are expensive AF, because it's a costly and lengthy process to obtain the USDA Certified Organic label.
To me, eating organic is an investment in my own health and wellness. If you can take on tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, in college loans to invest in your own education, where the returns on investment are sometimes arbitrary, why not invest a few more dollars in buying organic produce and know for sure that you're getting safe, quality produce.?
Tip: One way to not break your bank while eating organic is to buy produce from your local farmers. You can visit the farms and can be certain of their agricultural practices.
Another reason why most people confuse being vegan as more expensive is due to the way our brains are wired to compare choices. Dan Ariely, a behavioral economist, covered the topic of relative prices in his book "Predictably Irrational." He states that we make decisions between two choices based on their similar attributes.
Imagine a plate of fresh, crunchy vegan salad and a plate of warm, non-vegan lasagna. Both are priced at the same price of $12. Which do you think is more expensive? Most would think that the salad is expensive because c'mon, it's just vegetables! What if we don't compare choices by price? Let's say we compare between two similar salads. Both have the same amount of vegetables, but one has a few extra strips of meat for $4 more. The distinction of value between the two isn't so clear now, is it?
What we can learn from this example is that sometimes we cannot just compare the value of two goods based on price alone, because contrary to popular economic belief, there are many other factors that affect pricing, not just supply and demand. Sometimes prices don't fully capture the true value of the good, and we call these missing values externalities.
Now that you understand a little bit about organic produce and behavioral economics, I hope that you make conscious and informed decisions the next time you go grocery shopping or ordering from a menu, Know what you are putting into your body and make fair comparisons between choices.
Peas out.
