Businesses asked to cut prices for consumers - what do you think to the new government campaign?

[fisicx]

Not if its going to be nutritious and tasty. Yes, you can survive on food that is cheap and easy but I do not think its going to be palatable and healthy.

Depends on your cooking skills. It’s not difficult to do cheap, nutritious and tasty. There are plenty of ‘cooking on a budget’ books and websites.

 

[Mark T Jones]

Effort is a problem, if you have been working and have had a a long day and a long commute. I imagine its worse if your job is manual labour. Potentially it's a question if priorities.

As for meat, cooking healthy and tasty vegan food is a lot more effort than doing the same with meat..

absolutely not

 

[gpietersz]

@fisicx @Mark T Jones some example dishes maybe?

I am genuinely interested and willing to be convinced.

 

[fisicx]

The internet is awash with recipes. For example:

Cheap family meals: Budget recipes under £1 per head

It's easy to cook cheap family meals with our selection of budget recipes…

www.goodto.com

Family Budget Meals And Recipes | Tesco Real Food

You don't need a fortune to enjoy tasty meals. Take a look at our easy recipes for family budget meals over at Tesco Real Food today.

realfood.tesco.com

 

[Nico Albrecht]

I am genuinely interested and willing to be convinced.

I would be interested too. Specially the vegan stuff how to hit all your nutrition's and stay cheap.

I think this can't be done and calories / £ on junk food is not beatable hence why poor people haver a higher obesity rate. Stats in UK and USA show clearly that the most obese people are also the ones with the lowest income.

I get where Mark is coming from but he can only do it because of a high disposable income. You need to spend significant more money to eat healthy.

 

[Mark T Jones]

@fisicx @Mark T Jones some example dishes maybe?

I am genuinely interested and willing to be convinced.

Start the thread, I will happily populate it.
.a great start is to look towards the med and middle east - eg simple pasta sauce- tomato, basil garlic, onion

Add body with veg eg courgette pimp it with olives (not veggie!) Olives or capers

Spaghetti puttanesca

Cook up this classic sauce in one pan, then toss with spaghetti for a simple midweek meal. It's budget-friendly too, making it a great meal for the family

www.bbcgoodfood.com

 

[fisicx]

I get where Mark is coming from but he can only do it because of a high disposable income. You need to spend significant more money to eat healthy.

See my links above. Adding flavour to low cost foods isn’t difficult.

 

[Mark T Jones]

I get where Mark is coming from but he can only do it because of a high disposable income. You need to spend significant more money to eat healthy.

Incorrect at every level.

Start with the fact that fresh seasonal veg doesn't need flavour, it is flavour

 

[japancool]

@fisicx @Mark T Jones some example dishes maybe?

I am genuinely interested and willing to be convinced.

Rice & omelette:

White rice - 25p.
2 eggs - 20p.
1 tomato - 12p.
1/2 onion - 12p.
A splash of your favourite umami sauce (fish sauce, worcestershire sauce etc)
Some cooking oil.

Total cost: around 70p per head, not including cooking oil.

 

[MarkOnline]

See my links above. Adding flavour to low cost foods isn’t difficult.

Well I made a minced beef dish with tomato puree and onions and a dash of light soy sauce. Beef flavoured rice on the side. I can honestly say it was shite!! I usually buy M&S ready meals, I shall be going shopping tomorrow.

 

[Nico Albrecht]

Rice & omelette:

and we are back to junk und unhealthy food.

White rice - intake of arsenic is associated with an increased risk of cancer, heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

2 eggs - 20p. 10p an egg lowest quality possibility her. Who buys eggs for 10p a pop

A splash of your favourite umami sauce (fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce etc)
Some cooking oil = So we got super highly processed crap + high sodium on top .

So 70p gets you cheap carbs and high sodium e.g junk food = fast track to diabetes and hearth problems.

 

[Nico Albrecht]

See my links above. Adding flavour to low cost foods isn’t difficult.

Had a look at those and this is cheap junk food. Recipes call for cheap highly processed carbs e.g 500g spaghetti for 20p or budget 2kg chicken thighs @ £3 for 2KG. This can't be good.

As said before to have a healthy diet you will need to spend at least 50% more on food and need a higher disposable income.

 

[Nico Albrecht]

Start with the fact that fresh seasonal veg doesn't need flavour, it is flavour

problem is you need more than some veggies to get the daily macros right on a veggie diet. So to balance that out you would need sources of fat and protein from plants. Problem here is they are being poorly absorbed by your body those plant based proteins.

Next would be fat, so nuts or good oil is the closest thing which are quite expensive.

You cant hit all daily macros on a vegan diet and be cheap. If you figured it out enlighten us by posting some macros to support your facts. I'm honestly curious how you solved that problem on a budget.

 

[Mark T Jones]

problem is you need more than some veggies to get the daily macros right on a veggie diet. So to balance that out you would need sources of fat and protein from plants. Problem here is they are being poorly absorbed by your body those plant based proteins.

Next would be fat, so nuts or good oil is the closest thing which are quite expensive.

You cant hit all daily macros on a vegan diet and be cheap. If you figured it out enlighten us by posting some macros to support your facts. I'm honestly curious how you solved that problem on a budget.

Olive oil
Nuts and seeds (only small quantities needed - not expensive)
Dark chocolate
Eggs


If you want to find problems, you undoubtedly will..

 

[MOIC]

Nothing wrong with some frozen foods, as long as it's not filled with saturated fats, try frozen vegetables, normally takes less than 2 minutes to heat through.

Jacket potatoes with variety of 'cheap' fillings can be good for you, including many protein options.

For a few sources of protein, try the following:

Chickpeas
Lentils
Tofu
Quinoa
Seitan
Edamame beans
Nuts (as mentioned)
Seeds
Wholegrains (breads, rice and pasta)
Dairy products (Milk, yoghurt and cheese)

Eating a variety of the above foods will give you what you need.

Avoid packet/bottled sauces, just use fresh spices.

Onion, garlic, celery & carrots can be your base for any flavourful dish.

Try different fruits for a snack, instead of biscuits, cakes, crisps etc.

 

[estwig]

People always get the quantity wrong with protein.

NHS minimum recommended amount of daily protein for a man is 80g, that's equivalent to 4 chicken breasts a day, it's 60g for a woman. You can't get anything like that quantity, from nuts and beans.

If you're active, play sport, etc, then it's more like you'll need 100-120g a day, that's a lot of chicken!

 

[japancool]

NHS minimum recommended amount of daily protein for a man is 80g, that's equivalent to 4 chicken breasts a day, it's 60g for a woman. You can't get anything like that quantity, from nuts and beans.

80g is about 400g of beans. I have no idea how many beans that is, but it does sound like a lot to eat, even over a day. But I'm not a vegetarian, I wouldn't know if that's doable.

On the other hand, it would cost about 40p, which is a lot cheaper than the equivalent amount of protein in meat.

 

[Mark T Jones]

People always get the quantity wrong with protein.

NHS minimum recommended amount of daily protein for a man is 80g, that's equivalent to 4 chicken breasts a day, it's 60g for a woman. You can't get anything like that quantity, from nuts and beans.

If you're active, play sport, etc, then it's more like you'll need 100-120g a day, that's a lot of chicken!

It fascinates me that in a nation with a visible and rapidly growing (literally and metaphorically) issue with excess, when diet is discussed a few people always bring up deficiencies.

I've personally only ever met one person with a serious protein deficiency - a vegetarian who didn't like vegetables so usually defaulted to crisps and chocolate. Regular minor deficiencies are easily remedied, unlike the products of excess - heard disease, diabetes, strokes etc.

Anyone who is genuinely interested should take a look at the Blue Zones - an insight to the world's healthiest & longest-lived communities.

Very rapid summary: There differences & there are similarities.

Differences:

- Some drink alcohol some don't. (those that do do so in moderation, nearly always accompanying a meal)
- Poetically, the 3 most healthy and long-lived - one is vegan, one veggie and one meat-eating. However meat is eaten in moderation, as a component of a meal when it is available.

Similarities:

- All would classify as poor. (properly poor, not can't afford a new iPhone poor)
- All eat what is available & in season - except for easily stored staples like rice and pulses.
- All eat communally - whether extended family or the local community.
- All are 'busy', by which I mean they are up and about. They don't work out or go to the gym, they just stay busy.

I don't recall any mention of deficiencies.

 

[gpietersz]

Had a look at those and this is cheap junk food. Recipes call for cheap highly processed carbs e.g 500g spaghetti for 20p or budget 2kg chicken thighs

Yes. lots of white rice, things based on white flour and the like. Supermarket bread is horribly unhealthy: https://joinzoe.com/learn/podcast-can-bread-be-healthy

Eggs

Eggs are very nutritious but not vegan (or "plant based")! Its much easier to eat a healthy vegetarian diet than a vegan one.

It fascinates me that in a nation with a visible and rapidly growing (literally and metaphorically) issue with excess, when diet is discussed a few people always bring up deficiencies.

Because it is not at all uncommon to be both overweight and malnourished. Look at levels of vitamin D deficiency in developed countries - especially Australia.

Anyone who is genuinely interested should take a look at the Blue Zones -

The evidence is questionable: https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/blue-zones-diet-speculation-based-on-misinformation/

All would classify as poor.

Japan is poor?

 

[Mark T Jones]

Yes. lots of white rice, things based on white flour and the like. Supermarket bread is horribly unhealthy: https://joinzoe.com/learn/podcast-can-bread-be-healthy

Eggs are very nutritious but not vegan (or "plant based")! Its much easier to eat a healthy vegetarian diet than a vegan one.

Because it is not at all uncommon to be both overweight and malnourished. Look at levels of vitamin D deficiency in developed countries - especially Australia.


The evidence is questionable: https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/blue-zones-diet-speculation-based-on-misinformation/


Japan is poor?

All of what I read refers to communities not countries - and yes, specific communities were poor

Of course, every piece of research ever undertaken has been skewed one way or another and is open to various interpretations, but the themes here are reasonably consistent if not precise

 

[japancool]

Japan is poor?

It's not the case now, but it used to be that the rich in Japan suffered from much higher rates of beri-beri. The reason was that the rich ate polished white rice, which doesn't provide enough vitamin B1, while the poor ate unpolished rice or millet.

That's not really been the case since WW2 though.

 

[gpietersz]

It's not the case now, but it used to be that the rich in Japan suffered from much higher rates of beri-beri. The reason was that the rich ate polished white rice, which doesn't provide enough vitamin B1, while the poor ate unpolished rice or millet.

That is interesting. I knew it used to be that case that the rich in most countries used to eat white grains and white bread, but I did not know of any resulting health effects.

You need to be a bit careful with wholemeal rice though - much higher levels of arsenic.

 

[IanSuth]

That is interesting. I knew it used to be that case that the rich in most countries used to eat white grains and white bread, but I did not know of any resulting health effects.

You need to be a bit careful with wholemeal rice though - much higher levels of arsenic.

In the uk it was a case of how many sieves the flour went through, each sieving (of progressively smaller mesh) added to processing cost so the rich could buy the finer and whiter flour whilst the poor got the courser bread which could still contain bits of millstone grit. If you watched a lot of timeteam and the like they used to mention how poorer people had more worn teeth due to the grit in their daily bread. It was not until the 1870's that roller mills widely took over from millstones (they make separating the constituent parts and making pure white flour easier)

But by the point they could afford flour missing all the bran etc they were rich enough to be substituting any nutritional deficiency from many other sources. But I am sure many suffered from the dodgy additives used by some millers to make flour appear whiter (Alum was often added as it both whitened the flour and absorbed water making a loaf heavier which mattered when there were legal min weights for a loaf )

 

[Nico Albrecht]

the 3 most healthy and long-lived - one is vegan, one veggie and one meat-eating

Stoccareddo is worth looking up as a good example of the opposite.

 

[gpietersz]

The biggest well established rules are:

1. Sugar is bad
2. The more heavily processed food is, the worse it is - but it depends on the food and the type of processing.

 

[fisicx]

No need to cut prices when there are complete idiots like these around:

Cost of living: The people who can't stop spending

One in four are financially stretched but reluctant to curb spending, according to research.

www.bbc.co.uk

I have zero sympathy for people like these.

 

[twobic]

According to the BBC, UK businesses will be asked to cut prices for consumers in a new government campaign starting next month.

Given that inflation is now the number one concern for both consumers and business owners, we want to know: what do small businesses think of the proposal?

How has your business been affected by the cost of living crisis and what steps have you taken to minimise the impact? For example, have you increased prices as a result of inflation?

I would love to know who really came up with this 'government initiative' because I want to know how well they fared in employing such ridiculous business strategies in their own enterprises.

Maybe MPs should keep their noses where they belong...