Organic has a more expensive reputation.
A comparison between organic and non‑organic ingredients for a simple spaghetti Bolognese showed a substantial price difference at a Holladay grocery store. The cost for organic ground beef, canned tomatoes, carrots, onion, spinach, pasta and milk was $31.72 — double that of non-organic.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture says organic carries a greater price because of higher production costs. Organic fertilizers for plants and feed for animals cost more for farmers, which is then passed on to shoppers.
“If you feel very strongly that you prefer to eat organic, that's just fine,” said registered dietitian Paige Smathers. “But that value of preferring organic, you'll have to decide which one's more important, your budget or eating organic. And people get to make their own decisions there.”
While the price of eggs, the poster child for inflated food prices, has fallen, other food costs are still feeling some inflation pressure, according to government economic data. Despite the higher cost of organic food, Smathers explained, there are some key principles to grocery shopping on a budget.
“One strategy is to come up with a couple of go‑to meals for each meal of the day,” she said, adding that creating meals with different combinations of the same ingredients is a good way to save money. Your grocery list is then based on what you planned. Otherwise, eating healthy is about variety.
“From a nutrition perspective, if you say, what sounds good to me, what do I feel like eating? And then what else can I add to that so it's a meal, so that it's satisfying, so that it meets my needs?”So what if you’re looking for vegetables, but your wallet can’t support the organic premium at the store? One option to save money while committing to a completely organic diet is to grow the vegetables you need.
Just about 550 families in Salt Lake County grow their own vegetables in plots run by Wasatch Community Gardens. The nonprofit manages 19 gardens and two urban farms as part of its mission to make fresh, organic produce accessible to all walks of life.
At the Fitts Park community garden in South Salt Lake, Clare Vergobbi, one of three community garden program managers in Salt Lake City, marveled at the surprising amount of produce you can pack into a small space.
“We've got 38 plots out here,” they said. “It's a pretty small space, pretty small footprint. But that being said, there are 38 individuals or families who are growing here.”
People do use the gardens to save money on groceries, Vergobbi said. In 2024, Wasatch Community Gardens reported that around 40 tonnes of produce were grown in their plots. They estimated a retail value of more than $200,000.
Growing vegetables takes time and effort. It also takes some planning, particularly if you're growing for the winter.
“We consider a lot of things like storage vegetables,” they said. “That would be, you know, your potatoes, your carrots, your winter squash, pumpkins, that sort of stuff. Onions are another one.”
Vegetable seeds can cost a couple of bucks, a rather small investment that can last a long time.
“I don't really buy vegetables over the summer at all and through the fall,” Vergobbi said. “So if you're thinking about how much you spend now, if you're not growing your own vegetables and subtracting — basically July, August, September, October, November is kind of what I can get through.”
Returning to the spaghetti Bolognese, substituting garden-grown vegetables and only purchasing organic ground beef, pasta and milk, the total cost of the meal comes to $19.48. Still more than purchasing every ingredient non‑organic at a total of $16.15.
To Vergobbi, the extra couple of dollars is worth growing your own vegetables.
“I think it's a good trade‑off. And honestly, it's a lot of fun,” they said. “You learn a lot, you get to grow exactly what you want and discover new vegetables and new things that you might like.”
