Is a Vegan Diet Affordable for Everyone?

Many people seem to have the impression that a vegan diet is more costly than a traditional diet containing meat. In fact, there's no reason why this should be the case as a vegan diet needn't cost any more than an omnivorous diet. Protein sources such as beans, lentils, oats, and tofu are so much cheaper than buying meat, and plant-based milks are often the same price, if not cheaper, than cow's milk.

The reason for the 'vegan is expensive' notion is likely due to the fact that many products labelled as 'vegan' are situated down the supermarket 'free from' isle, branded and usually more highly priced. However, the good news is that vegans need not venture down this isle at all!

Here are my simple top tips that will keep your vegan food shopping within budget:

Put beans and lentils at the top of your list as the main sources for protein

Beans and lentils are a great source of protein and extremely cheap to buy in most supermarkets. You can buy beans dry and cook them yourself, which is really time consuming, or you can save time and buy them canned, already cooked and ready to eat. A can of cooked beans costs around 50p, provides two servings and giving around 10 grams of protein per serving. Lentils can also be purchased either dry or cooked; lentils don't take quite as long as beans to cook from scratch so buying them dry can actually save you more money. A kilo bag of dry lentils can cost as little as 'a32, and that will provide around 10 servings, giving 8 grams of protein per serving.

Avoid buying foods that are specified as 'vegan' on the label

Where a product is labelled 'vegan' the price is often doubled or tripled. So if you are shopping down the 'free from' isle or going to specialist health stores and buying products labelled 'vegan', your shopping bill could be at least double than it need be. There really is no need to pay more just because products labelled as 'vegan', instead just read the labels of everyday food products, they will provide all the information you need. Where a product contains milk, egg or any other allergen, in the UK the producer must highlight this on the list of ingredients. This makes a vegan's life a lot easier when looking at food labels. You'll find that many products in the supermarket such as cereal, cooking sauces and crisps are actually vegan but they just aren't labelled as such.

Look out for special offers

Quite often, supermarkets will have promotions on a wide range of vegan products such as plant-based milks and yogurts, and occasionally those 'special products' labelled 'vegan' such as mock meats. This is the time to buy these products, and stock up if you can. Multi-buy or half price offers are also regularly available on tins of beans, cooking sauces, dried pasta and numerous other items.

Buy fresh produce instead of processed foods

You will find that you often pay a lot more for processed foods. So, instead of buying ready-made meals, buy fresh produce and make your own. You can even make meals in batches to save even more money in the long run. Great meals to cook in batches include, bolognese, curries, chilli and stews- these can be frozen and consumed in the future at times when you have limited time to cook from scratch. I've heard it claimed that buying fresh produce from farmers markets can also save you money; it's worth a look.