Lately I've been thinking about the relationship between food and money. After my review of 8 oz Burger Bar, a friend emailed me to point out that not everyone can afford to buy responsible meat or frequent pricey restaurants that offer responsible options. At first I felt a kind of yuppie guilt, recalling days past when (if I'm honest with myself) I was a lot more thoughtful about issues of financial privilege and (because I had very little money) a lot more critical of any ideals--including environmentalism generally--that could only really be pursued by the wealthy. Have I lost touch with reality?
I've decided that I haven't. Here's what I think now: regardless of how much money you have, eating consciously takes significant sacrifice. Most of the time it doesn't mean paying more for your food...it means eating different food. It's not as if I now eat out exclusively at expensive restaurants. I mostly eat at the same places I always did, except now I choose something vegetarian. From an animal ethics perspective, eating consciously means ordering a bean burrito at Taco Bell instead of a chicken one, not giving up burritos altogether.
My grocery bills have dropped significantly since I began eating this way, and most of my restaurant bills are lower too. Eating a plant-based diet is less expensive--much less expensive--than a meat-based one. And if you're eating 1/2 as much meat, you can afford to pay twice as much per pound for the meat you do consume.
Sure, not everyone can pay $10+ for a responsible hamburger every time they have the urge. But neither can I. Forbearance is a matter of sacrifice, not affordability; it's the willingness to go without. Deciding not to order hamburgers at McDonald's takes discipline, eating less meat takes discipline--discipline a lot of people are not willing to exercise. But having money doesn't make discipline easier.
I acknowledge that the sacrifices involved in trying to eat in a more thoughtful, responsible way will sometimes look different for people of different budgets. Some people can afford to buy all the meat they want at Whole Foods and eat out only in pricey restaurants. Some people can treat themselves to an expensive meal every time they feel like it. (For the record, I am not one of those people.) But for most people (myself included), eating and shopping responsibly takes thought and planning and a willingness to eat less meat. Coming soon is my review of a restaurant that serves only conscious meat; that restaurant is not cheap, and I realize that not everyone can spontaneously decide to eat there. But anyone can choose to pay more for meat and eat less of it, and anyone can choose to spend more money eating out if they eat out less.
Lots of people with money to burn eat lots of "irresponsible" food. Having money isn't a silver bullet. Every person who thinks about these issues--regardless of income--has choices to make and priorities to weigh. And--regardless of income--everyone will land somewhere different on the spectrum of conscious eating.
