Budget Friendly Shopping Tips on Eating Clean

1.    Be wise with organic purchases: Use your Dirty Dozen & Clean 15 list.

2.    Purchase “in-season” fresh produce: Produce will be more expensive if you purchase it when it’s not in season. Take advantage of what produce is currently in season. 

3.    Frozen produce: Produce selected for freezing is harvested at its most ripe stage. When ripe, produce it’s at its peak with the most nutrition*

4.    Avoid pre-packaged/pre-sliced produce: You will save money with your own prep at home.

5.    Shop locally: Go to your local farmers market. Produce will be fresher than your produce found in stores since the produce are picked a day before its sold.   

6.    Sales flyer & coupons: See what is on sale and you can plan your meals for the week accordingly while saving money.

7.    Plan ahead: Plan your meals and only purchase what you need for the week.

* “Shortly after being picked, fruits and vegetables start to lose moisture, become susceptible to spoilage and decline in nutrient value. The "fresh" produce you get at a grocery store was likely picked or pulled from the ground several days, or even weeks, ago. Store it in your fridge for another few days, and you've got vegetables and fruits that have a lot of lost nutrients. –In an “Eating Well” article, according to Dr. Gene Lester of the USDA Agricultural Research Center in Weslaco, Texas."