With organic week under full swing, I am excited to appear on Marilyn Denis to speak about shopping for organic food on a budget. You can catch our conversation this Wednesday on CTV at 10 am EST.

Here are 10 ways to reduce your organic food costs:

1. Support Local: Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs)

These are small independent farms. You can buy a share in a farm, which supports a local farmer. They will deliver fresh produce to your door all summer long! Locally grown foods are better for the environment (fewer planes and trucks spewing pollutants and carbon) and for our health (fewer post-harvest preservatives and pesticides). Farmer's markets and farm websites are great resources for ways to cut back on eating out. With just a little bit of investigating, you can buy directly from your favorite restaurant's supplier. Check out the Vitality Magazine organic directory for details.

2. Buy in season

Strawberries and basil are incredibly cheap in season. Consider freezing so you'll have organic throughout the year. I bought a freezer from Craigslist for $100 and it saves me $1000 a year. For example, I bought 20 litres of cherries for $30 at the Evergreen Brickworks farmers market this summer and froze them whole. Now I just thaw them out when I crave a taste of summer bliss.

3. Buy Healthy Staples

Tortillas, white bread and Top Ramen noodles are filling, but they're not exactly loaded with nutrition. But they are also inexpensive, which is why such foods often become a staple for low-income families struggling to put food on the table. Cheaper organic staples include millet, dried beans, sunflower seeds and brown rice. When food stores like The Big Carrot have a sale, buy a case if you can. You save an extra 10% for a case discount on things like canned beans, oils and brown rice pasta.

4. Pull a Jamie Oliver

Jamie was nicknamed The Naked Chef because he taught the masses the secret to easy gourmet food by stripping down ingredient lists. When you buy high quality staples like olive oil, pastas, grains and rice you can transform the basic ingredients into all sorts of soul satisfying creations. Jamie never substitutes high-quality staples for cheaper ones because he wants you to enjoy home cooking just as pleasurable and fulfilling as any restaurant meal. If you really can’t cook, you may want to budget for a cooking class. 

5. To Meat or Not to Meat

A lean cut of meat can feed a family for days. The grass-fed eye-round is only $7.99 a pound vs. expensive organic cold cuts at $54 a pound. For those on a really tight budget you could go meatless for a few meals a week. The most expensive items on most organic shopping lists are the meats and cheeses. Consider eating a bean dish mixed with a grain such as rice. This makes a perfect vegetarian protein option that you can cook for less than $3.00 a meal.

Check out tomorrow's post for 5 more Organic Week tips!