Food basket

Isn’t it a food basket that the economists measure to determine if we have inflation? I think that’s the term. I’ve been pondering food lately.

This weekend I went to Aldi’s, Giant Eagle, and Heinens to buy food for the house. If you don’t know, Aldi’s is a German-owned discount grocery chain, Giant Eagle is a Pittsburgh-based grocery store chain, and Heinen’s is a high-end small local grocery store chain in the Cleveland area.

Aldi’s has lots of canned goods and some produce that I bought. Then I trotted off to Giant Eagle.

Giant Eagle has just about everything that I didn’t get at Aldi’s but didn’t have coconut creamer or Good bars (problem with a Pittsburgh-based store in Ohio: doesn’t sell Ohio based snack bars) so I had to go to Heinen’s.

Heinen’s has beautiful produce and I always end up buying some vegetable or fruit there. I also bought the coconut creamer for my coffee and the Good bars, which my friend Karen got me hooked on.

Here’s the thing. I don’t shop much anymore in grocery stores and when I do, I tend to buy produce, dog food, beer and wine, and household items like detergent. There’s very little in the stores that I eat.

When did eating become so difficult? I want to buy meat but I want the grass-fed kind. Aldi’s has some but I looked at it and it comes from three different countries and then is combined in the US. That creeped me out so I passed on that. Then I looked at Giant Eagle’s meat. The chicken lists all of the things not used (antibiotics and cages mainly) but it says the chickens were on a vegetarian diet. Well, chickens aren’t vegetarians so I stood there debating what to do. Finally I reluctantly picked out a package.

At Heinen’s, I always wait until some meat is on sale before I buy anything but I checked the bison and the grass fed beef just to be safe. No sale this week.

I buy my eggs at the Trapp Family Farm and I often buy meat at Brunty’s Farm and I buy produce at the Hudson Farmer’s Market during the summer. Winter time, I’m back to the grocery store.

I felt very out of place in Giant Eagle because I eat so little of what’s there. There is a new Giant Eagle in a neighboring town that is going after the Whole Foods market. I like shopping there because they have really good seafood.

I’m not sure what my point is but since I only have to shop for me, I can have these quirky eating habits. If I had to cook for someone else, I bet I’d revert to a more traditional shopping and eating pattern. In case you’re wondering, I’ve quit eating most prepared foods, most grain-based foods (like bread), food with added sugar, and most dairy products. They occasionally make their way into my food basket but not often.

 

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4 thoughts on “Food basket

  1. And that is why you feel and look so great– the healthiest ever, right? You are inspiring. And thanks for the tip about Aldi’s countries of origin in their grass-fed meats– I wasn’t paying attention to that but will now. We also have the West Side Market downtown that offers much local food…

    • I know we have the West Side Market, though I have to say that the last time I was there, I bought very stale bread and berries that were molding so I need to be more careful what I get.

      I don’t know that the multi-national meat at Aldi’s is bad but it doesn’t seem very local. So the animals are grass-fed but the environmental footprint of shipping that in from different places is not good.

      It’s like almonds and the huge water being diverted in California to raise them. That’s fine until there’s a drought. Our world is not a simple one, I guess.

  2. I never gave much thought to what chickens eat until you said that they’re not vegetarians. So I went poking around on the Internet. I found this interesting site: http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/chicken-treat-chart-the-best-treats-for-backyard-chickens, and this quote from hencam.com: “Chickens also eat less exciting foods, like vegetables, fruits, flowers and grass. They eat grains and seeds. They scratch the ground and find bugs and specks of things that we can’t see.” Your blog gave me ‘food’ for thought! Thank you!

    • It’s good to hear from you, Kelly! I think that factory-farm chickens are fed horrible animal by-products which is why saying they’re being raised as vegetarians is seen as a good thing. A normal, healthy chicken should be eating just like the website you found says. That’s why chickens are always pecking in the grass and dirt.

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