A lot of us are aware of rising food costs and if you are on a low income or you have a large family, this can make cooking a healthy, interesting dinner every night a bit like a juggling act.

A lot of foods are more expensive than ever, including staples such as beef, chicken, milk, and butter. There are various reasons for these price increases. The rising energy costs mean that food is more expensive to process and to deliver to retail outlets so the end price reflects this.

A lot of countries have better living standards than they had previously, including China and India, and these countries are importing more of our produce. Ethanol is more expensive and is used to grow produce such as corn, soybeans, wheat, barley, and oats, making the prices of those go up too. Sometimes there seems to be no food cost control because there seems to be no end to the price increases.

Animals eat grains so the price of beef, chicken and more is on the up because the animal has cost more to feed. Grains such as corn and oats are used in breakfast cereals so these now cost more and so does the milk to pour over it!

How to Make Your Money Go Further

If you are low on money but still want to give your family high quality, nutritious meals, there are a few things you can do. First of all, why not plan the week’s meals ahead of time and shop for all the ingredients? Try to include plenty of grains and fresh produce because these are nutritious and filling.

Chicken has always been economical and you can make a tasty meal like fried chicken, corn on the cob and potato salad very cheaply. Chicken is actually very versatile to cook with and you can make all kinds of sauces to go with it as well as cooking it in different ways, such as grilling, frying, baking, poaching and more.

If you have ever read the history of Kentucky Fried Chicken you will know they started very small but managed to transform cheap ingredients into delicious meals. You can do the same and made KFC style recipes for the family. This is certainly cheaper than taking them out for fast food and fried chicken is very simple to make. For a healthier twist, oven fried chicken tastes just like deep fried chicken but is lower in both fat and calories.

Vary What You Eat

Easy and healthy meals like stir-fry do not use big pieces of chicken or meat, so they work out cheaper than meals where you have a full piece of meat or fish per person. You might want to have a simple pasta or rice dish four times a week and something meatier the other nights. This is a better solution than “feast and famine” where you eat like kings for a few weeks then realize you only have enough money for cans of baked beans for the rest of the month.

Homemade food is healthier and cheaper than eating out or buying prepackaged food or TV dinners. Making your own meals means you know what ingredients your family is consuming and you can tweak the recipes to suit their individual tastes or make double and freeze it, to save having to cook another night.

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Category: Food and Drinks
Keywords: rising food costs,food costs,despite rising food,food budget,food budget