This salad represents a number of different places to buy food. The bed of baby arugula is from Trader Joe’s. The pine nuts hail from Whole Food’s bulk bin. Those cubes of red are roasted beets are cut from a trio I bought at Acme. The scoop of chicken salad, at 10 o’clock, was made of leftovers from a rotisserie bird I ordered from my local chicken specialist, Rotisseur. The crumbled goat cheese in the 5 o’clock position was from a local cheese maker, and the little white scoop at the center was a skordalia-style sauce that came with the rotisserie chicken.
The melange made for a flavorful, fast, satisfying meal, but it also represents my quest to save money on our monthly food tab. After years of near perfect fidelity to Whole Foods, I have been shopping around.What I’ve found has been a little surprising. That bag of Trader Joe’s arugula costs the same as the one I usually buy at Whole Foods–$1.99.
To my amazement though, many things actually cost more outside of Whole Foods. On a recent comparison shopping excursion, I learned that the conventional (not to mention just plain beat up and unappetizing) beets and fennel at Acme, my neighborhood “megamarket”, are somehow more expensive than their beautiful, organic counterparts at Whole Foods.
I think this has to do with the fact that they are in season, cold weather crops. Organic red peppers–a decidedly out of season item–sold at Whole Foods will run you, at least this time of year, roughly $4 EACH. Sorry, I don’t break out the all caps very often. But seriously, there are two large, meal-size sandwiches I sometimes buy in South Philly (Bitar’s felafel, Viet Tofu’s tofu banh mi) that cost $3 or only 75 percent as much as that single bell pepper. Those peppers are why people think eating healthy food is too expensive for the average person, but the key to balancing health and budget is knowing what you should buy, and when.
Coffee costs a lot less at Trader Joe’s, even the organic fair trade beans. My usual coffee from Whole Foods costs $1 per ounce and a comparable bag of beans at TJ’s is just 61 cents per ounce. My normal cheddar, Cabbot extra sharp, is also more than a dollar cheaper per pound at TJ’s. Most of my other usual staple purchases were within pennies of each other at the two stores, except for eggs, a contest in which Whole Foods is the winner with 12 of their finest organic and cage free eggs priced at $3.89 versus Trader Joe’s dozen at $4.29.
Beyond the price checks, I couldn’t help but notice something else while I shopped at Trader Joe’s: the temptations. It was a long, slow walk down the frozen food aisle during which I stopped to hold packets of frozen tamales and boxes of pot stickers and willed myself to put them back. I eyed the plastic box of cinnamon graham crackers, dusted with sugar, so crunchy and sweet, and I struggled to walk on by. Few of these treats cost more than $3.50.
These goodies are there at Whole Foods, obviously, but I have become completely insensitive to their seduction. They are prohibitively expensive at the famous health food store, even when I’m not being cautious about my spending. It just makes me feel stupid to pay $9 for 12 ravioli that are frozen and I will have to later cook myself. I am in a well worn pattern of shopping the produce section, meat case, bulk foods bins, and dairy aisle. I make a list, buy what I came for, and leave the store having spent, on average, $75 to $100 a week for the past five years regardless of what kind of income stream I’m working with.
Going forward, I do think I will try to get to Trader Joe’s every couple weeks to stock up on coffee and cheese. Acme, offering neither value nor quality, will continue to be a place I shop in emergency situations only. But the meat and potatoes of my weekly household food supply will keep on coming from Whole Foods. I’ll be using the budget-friendly, bulk-foods oriented, seasonal produce seeking, from-scratch cooking strategy that has always kept my grocery bills in check.
What about taking in consideration the layout if the store, cleanliness and wait at checkout? If you add all those, I definitively stick with Whole Foods.
I am a Whole Foods girl on a Trader Joe’s budget. Here in Chicago we have the MOST amazing Whole Foods. If I could, I would shop only there every day for the rest of my life. But, it is sooo expensive so I do the bulk of my shopping at Trader Joe’s.
Plus, TJ’s is so kid-friendly. The little shopping carts, daily samples, stickers, prize basket at check-out, etc. Its smart on their part – the happier my kids are, the more likely I am to keep shopping there. And, the more likely I am to buy things that weren’t on my list!
It’s true the Trader Joe’s is very friendly place, for kids and adults alike. On one of my recent visits, as I approached the checkout line, the cashier literally started dancing and was so sweet and delightful I would shop only there if I would always get his line! I was actually there again today continuing my quest to identify my favorite of their value-priced coffees!
Good for you–and thank you for the research! I believe eating with the seasons is the best way to eat tasty food, and it doesn’t have to blow the budget to do so.
I do love me some Candy Cane Joe Joes though . . .
Kristen, I was amazed at how tempted I was by all those inexpensive treats at TJ’s. Avoiding out of season produce and embracing a full calendar year’s worth of veggies is definitely important, though I do think that Whole Food’s does me a huge favor with those crazy expensive packaged snacks and sweets.
Hi, Kirsten! Thanks for you commenting.There certainly is no shortage of lovable not-so-healthy goodies in boxes at TJ’s.
Sadly, Whole Foods saves you money by underpaying their staff and is currently making sure that people do not get enough hours to be able to qualify for medical care. Trade Joes is known for good prices on their in house brands, but whether they have GMOs on board is a mystery, as it is in most place.
It’s funny you should mention GMOs at TJ’s. I was there yesterday, and while I waited in line to check out, I noticed there was a black board that had something to the effect of: “Trader Joe’s does not use GMO in its house brands.” For whatever that’s worth. Obviously you can write whatever on a chalkboard.
I have had a problem with the TJs here in Portland. Some of their bread products become moldy the day after I get them home. Before their sell by date. I do the majority of my shopping at Whole Foods with some things from TJ’s.
That is a problem! I have noticed a lot of TJ’s produce being less than perfectly fresh but I haven’t encountered anything like what you describe with the bread. Yuck.
The Whole Foods in Oakland has sadly downhill since it first opened. This sucks as Oakland is a food desert and thus there aren’t many choices. The service can be iffy, the lighting is moody, we are totally over the deli counter and they finally got someone in who doesn’t mangle the fish. It isn’t the money I object to so much as it would be nice if the level of service and cleanliness reflected the prices we pay. The local Trader Joe’s I visit is, in general, a much nicer place to go. Unless it’s Sunday.
I used to avoid Whole Food aka Whole paycheck. Now I find myself going there for meat and fish with a splurge on the glass bottle milk. I do think most dairy products are cheaper at TJ’s. I don’t buy any produce there for 1) pre-packaged 2) not in season 3) packaging = trash. I used to get my bulk items at Henry’s/Sprouts, and the middle eastern and ethnic stores. I have started to get some at Whole foods when I find them organic. If not, they are much cheaper at the ethnic stores. I’d also toss in Costco to this list. I hated, hated Costco till recently. I find that the smoked salmon, white anchovies, and a few other items esp cheese is a great deal and a better product. Only problem, the quantity. It’s perfect for a party or to cut and freeze or share with friends. I do think shopping around is the best way to go, and the local farmer’s markets where you do support your local farmer too. I do like Whole Foods for that reason since it’s the same vendors as the farmer’s market and just about the same price too.
Great post, Thanks!
p.s. Avoiding those snacks at TJ’s is sooo hard, esp with kids. WF like you said is easy- too expensive.
I get the glass-bottled buttermilk and it’s only a splurge if I forget to bring the bottle back and claim my $2 deposit. Dairy products do seem a little cheaper at TJ’s but the one in my city at least only carries ultra-pasteurized milk whereas I prefer just plain pasteurized. There’s also a lack of grass-fed dairy options. My husband drinks a lot of milk so this is pretty important to me. I couldn’t agree more about the packaging on the produce. Thanks for the reminder about Costco–I have great things in about them. Stay strong in the snack aisle!
I would love to stick to in-season only fruits and veggies, but I find it difficult, because aside from what grows in my own backyard beds, I don’t know what grows and when – is there an easy way to get a list??
Jax-In Barbara Kingsolver’s Book “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle” she talks about the vegetannual. It is an imaginary concept of a giant plant which would spring forth w/ the correct fruits/vegetables in season. If you Google the book or the word you come up w/ a lot of interesting resources. Here is just one.
http://vegetannual.org/
You can also consult this list: http://localfoods.about.com/od/searchbyregion/a/pennseasons.htm. Common sense can be a surprisingly good guide, too. Like if something seems more expensive than it ought to be, out of season is a likely reason.
Great post, Joy. It confirms what I have always instinctively thought – that I really only love TJs for the chocolate (definitely cheaper — they have a Taza knockoff for half the price!) and bottom-dollar treats but that otherwise, Whole Foods can deliver more value, assuming one is shopping seasonally. But seasonality is only half the equation — Whole Foods is also starting to carry local produce as well. The meat department is moving in the local, grassfed direction as well, but I find the meats are not as good a value as tracking down a local farmer (www.thefamilycow.com or http://www.forksfarm.net) and buying grassfed/pastured meat products in bulk. This option is best for folks who have the space to store in bulk, though. In any event, thank you very much for this post!
I did not even consider the chocolate factor–which is major considering my husband’s fancy chocolate habit. Thanks for the reminder. I do keep my eye out for local produce and meats at Whole Foods. Plus, I’m still working through a cow share and just generally eat less meat than a lot of people.
Something to think about–TJs is an Aldi chain. Consumers had to beg for produce. Now, that being said, they are very aware of what their consumers want and price accordingly. But yes, you’ll often do as good or better at WF with produce and bulk. Dairy is unclear if you’re concerned about organic standards–check Cornucopia’s ratings. The easiest thing is to get you to pay a high markup for ‘organic in name only dairy.’ But you nailed it–TJs makes its money on prepackaged ‘gourmet convenience’ foods. If you care, both ship their produce from across the country and the world, but WF has been expanding local products.
great post, thanks for this. another fine comparison to make: both TJs and WF are super anti-union. i know that TJs is pretty good to their workers (i used to work at one), but any store that blocks union efforts by workers is a problem for me.
Interesting comparison.
In my metropolitan area we have only Whole Foods (no Trader Joe’s), but…we have Sprouts!! I’ve been to WF a couple of times – it’s a little over a mile from my Sprouts, but it is worlds away in attitude. Sadly, clientele and staff alike give me “the look” when I enter and shop at WF…the attitude that says, “why are YOU here? You don’t possibly measure up!” Given the fact that there are multi-million dollar homes surrounding their location…I’m not even going to go there.
Sprouts, on the other hand, has great quality produce, plenty of organic and non-GMO products, a quality bakery and deli area (and locally-sourced baked goods), fresh meat and fish, etc., etc., and I’d go there in a heartbeat for all of those things – in season and/or on sale. I am welcomed with a smile entering and leaving and I’m happy to be there.
I also shop Aldi – for staples like flour, milk, eggs, etc., and other promotional items.
Maybe someday we’ll get a Trader Joe’s and I can make your comparison for myself, but for now…it’s Sprouts for me.
That’s too bad that you’ve experienced a weird vibe at the Whole Foods where you live. People are so nice at the one where I shop. Sprouts sounds like a very nice store as well though. It’s interesting how supermarket choices vary so much from place to place.
I’ve been telling people for years that Whole Foods is cheap if you buy their house brand. You can’t find a better deal on canned coconut milk than the 365 brand. Chocolate, too.
I agree: the Trader Joe’s temptations are long. I can’t stand it.
Thanks for sticking up for WF
@Alys
I’ve worked for WF for almost 5 years at three different stores in three different states. I started out making $10.50/hour. I now make $18.75 as a non supervisor. I’ve never gotten less then 36 hours a week unless I requested it. I have just shy of $10k in my 401K and I’ve got 39 shares of stock (which will be splitting and doubling at the end of the month) Oh, I also get $170-$250 in gainsharing a month.
Perhaps there was a reason that you’re not getting the hours you wanted? Everyone who is a good worker in every store that I’ve worked in has all the hours they want. People who were lazy had their hours cut or fired.