“How do you be plant based on a budget… it’s impossible!”

We’ve all heard it. Fortunately, it’s complete nonsense. 🙌

There are so many cheap plant based meals and ingredients, being vegan is as – if not more – economical than eating an omnivorous diet.

In this article, we explore how to be vegan on a budget without compromising on flavour, satisfaction, health or enjoyment.

Whether you are a curious omnivore or a new vegan, let’s learn how to eat well and save money.

1. Set a weekly food budget
2. Don’t waste food
3. Prioritize wholefoods
4. Look for sales
5. Eat seasonal and local produce
6. Buy in bulk
7. Buy frozen foods
8. Buy off-brand
9. Make your own meals
10. The final word on how to be plant based on a budget

Set a weekly food budget

It may sound obvious, but the best way to be plant based on a budget is to know your budget in the first place.

Start by setting yourself a budget for your weekly eating.

When you know your budget, you know how much you can afford to spend at the grocery store, as well as how much you can spend on dining out and so on.

With a clear budget, you can begin to implement some of the cost-saving measures we outline in this article.

Don’t waste food

It should go without saying that wasting food is literally throwing money into the bin. It’s also not great for the planet either. 🌍

So, plan your weekly food shopping and eating to avoid wasting food.

Buy only what you can store and use before it goes bad. Don’t fall for sales tactics like ‘buy one get on free’ and end up buying more than you need just because it’s cheap.

Meanwhile, don’t always throw stuff out just because it has reached its expiration date.

Some foods will still be perfectly edible for many days after the ‘best before’ date. Use your own judgement: if it smells fine and tastes fine, it probably is fine.

This is usually the case with canned food, which can survive for years after its expiration date. Of course with fresh foods, and meat/dairy alternatives, you have to be more careful.

Prioritize wholefoods

Make wholefoods the base of your diet and drastically reduce the amount you spend each week (while also boosting your health).

Wholefoods such as fruit, vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, herbs and spices are all relatively cheap when compared to processed goods, like meat alternatives and ready-made meals.

You can also include other minimally processed plant-based foods like bread, tofu, soy milk and TVP (textured vegetable protein) in this category as they are relatively cheap and nutritious.

Cooking with wholefoods can either be bland and boring, or incredibly tasty and satisfying. There are so many amazing vegan recipes online, making it easy to whip up a tasty plant-based meal.

When you make wholefoods the base of your diet, you can then supplement this with some of your favourite plant-based alternatives, from vegan burgers to candy. 🍔

Look for sales

On the topic of buying some of your favorite plant-based alternatives, keep an eye out for sales at the grocery store.

This could either be planned promotional sales, such as two-for-one offers, or simply a quick price cut due to a close expiration date.

When you find something cheaper and you have the storage space for it, stock up!

For example, if your usual almond milk is £2.50 and it’s currently on offer for £1.20, then grab a couple. Saving a few pound here and there really makes a difference.

It goes without saying, but don’t buy these sale items for the sake of it.

The benefit is only going to be there if it’s something you regularly buy and use. Otherwise you may end up wasting food, which is counterproductive.

Eat seasonal and local produce

Wherever you live, you will have access to fruits and vegetables that are in season.

For example, rhubarb and mushrooms in spring, cherries and courgettes in the summer, and apples and Brussels sprouts in autumn. This is a good guide to seasonal eating from the Vegetarian Society.

Ultimately, local produce not only tastes better (because it hasn’t been transported across the planet), but it’s often more nutritious for the same reason.

Larger grocery stores will often provide some in season produce, but check out your local farmer’s market for produce that you know is in season and grown locally.

Buy in bulk

Buying bulk is usually a way to ensure you are getting better value for money.

You can do this to an extent in many grocery stores, although it’s usually easier to find bulk items like rice, grains, oats, dried beans, and so on, in bulk stores or online.

Just make sure that you have room to store larger quantities of food, and that its expiry date is suitable. Because buying bulk is only worthwhile if you don’t end up throwing half of it away.

Buy frozen foods

Buying frozen fruit and vegetables is a smart way to save money.

Compared to fresh, it costs less for companies to transport and store frozen produce, with savings passed onto you.

Note that some ingredients are better frozen than others. For example, frozen berries are ideal for desserts and smoothies, frozen spinach can be thrown into curries, and frozen peas are an easy side dish to any meal.

Buy off-brand

While some brands like Beyond and Alpro make some excellent meat and dairy alternatives, they also have big marketing budgets, which bump their prices higher.

Instead, opt for supermarket-own brands and you will often have a similar quality product for a smaller spend.

Make your own meals

Eating out is one of life’s true pleasures. Enjoying delicious vegan food in a nice atmosphere, and no need to wash dishes afterwards!

However, eating out all the time becomes very expensive. It’s therefore wise to make the majority of what you eat at home.

For example, make overnight oats for breakfast, take sandwiches/salads to the office, and then make an easy meal for dinner.

Then, when you do eat out at restaurants and in cafes, you can really appreciate the experience.

The final word on how to be plant based on a budget

As you can see, it’s actually pretty easy to be plant based on a budget. To recap, have a weekly budget (for both groceries and dining out), then:

• Prioritize wholefoods
• Eat seasonal and local produce
• Buy in bulk
• Buy frozen or canned foods
• Buy off-brand (i.e., supermarket own brands)
• Make your own budget-friendly meals
• …and finally, don’t waste food!

Do you have any smart money-saving tips to be vegan on a budget? Let me know in the comments!