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Toddlers: 12 - 24 Months
Do you shop at Whole Foods?
Ok, so I'm seriously going to start integrating organic, whole foods into our normal grocery routine and gradually eliminate all the other stuff. It's going to be a process but I think it's just something I need to at least try and do for my husband, my daughter, myself and baby #2.
So - who around here shops regularly at Whole Foods? Do they have decent sales and promotions to realistically make switching to organic worth while? At least for the staples like milk, eggs, bread, cheese, meats, veggies, etc.?
For example - non-hormone milk at my store usually runs between $3 and $4 a gallon. At the same store, organic milk starts at $5. How does a store like Whole Foods stack up on things like this and the other basics you buy regularly?
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Re: Do you shop at Whole Foods?
This is just my opinon. Whole Foods is okay for some things but mostly is a rip off. IT is so CRAZY expensive.
And I personally think organic is just a fad....I have read studies that are starting to say it is not as food for you as people think it is.
Well that's kinda the point of my post - to find out what kinds of staples actually cost and if at least the basics can be covered there without going bankrupt. I'm not looking to change things like detergent or shampoo - just trying to get an idea of where the values lie.
Like milk is around $6. Fruit is about double of non organic fruit.
Meat is super expensive.
Whole Foods - also known as Whole Pay Check!
I shop there for DD only. She gets the organic meat etc... Fresh Market has Organic Milk for $1 less.
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I do shop at Whole Foods, but not exclusively.
We eat almost 100% organic, whole natural foods.
My local regular grocer (Kroger) carries many organic foods and produce. They tend to have better prices than WF. They have their brand of organic milk which is much cheaper than say, Horizon.
To get started I suggest changing dairy to organic and sticking with the dirty dozen/clean fifteen https://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-to-know/health/the-dirty-dozen-and-clean-15-of-produce/616/
I would also look into local farmers markets in your area, also dropoffs that you can share with friends.
It's not as hard or as expensive as you may think. Cut out eating at a restaurant 2x a month.. and there's the extra $$ to go organic.
We call Whole Foods, "Whole Wallet." It's insanely expensive.
We also buy mostly organic, but I don't shop there. And I'm of the opinion that you buy local first, organic second. See if there is a local dairy near you that delivers. The milk we get is hormone-free but not organic, but the farm is just outside of town and they welcome visitors, which to me says a lot. It's also a lot fresher than Horizon that's shipped in and sits on the shelves for a week before you buy it. It's no longer the season for CSA shares, but that's a great way to get organic produce at a fraction of what you'd pay at a specialty store. We get organic chicken at Costco, buy a side of grass-fed organic pork from a local farmer, and get a quarter of beef from my IL's every year when they butcher a steer, and it all gets stored in our chest freezer. Costco is also great for random organic stuff, like bread, canned tomatoes, snacks, etc.
None of this winds up being cheap, but it's much, much cheaper than if I just went to WF for all my shopping.
A fad????
Organic has been around for a long time. I think it's more about people being more concerned and getting educated about the scary pesticides they put in our food... and not about being a "cool kid"
I'm not trying to be snarky at all... I'm just very passionate about eating whole, natural foods. And teaching my children to do the same. It's the best start for a healthy life I can give them
Thanks Ladies for your input
My grocery store offeres a lot of organic options (we go to Harris Teeter) and there is also a Whole Foods a mile from there so I may go once to do some comparison shopping, but sounds like I'll start making my switch right where I normally shop anyway 
We do have farmer's market here but it just ended at the end of October, but we did get a lot of veggies from there over the summer. If I can convince DH to put in a veggie garden again this spring then obviously we eliminate that whole issue right away.
Jillian Michaels discusses organic food in her "Master Your Metabolism" book and she breaks it down into three categories for those trying to save money. She points out where to put your money into for organics, what you can or can do without and stuff that is simply a waste of money.
I am not an expert on organic. I give LOs organic milk (which is available at most stores - $6) and yogurt. When they were doing purees (under 1yr) I used almost all organic produce.
For me, if I were to make a significant change for the whole family I'd do all organic dairy, and hormone free meats.
Whole Foods is expensive in general. They don't call it Whole Paycheck for nothing. They do have an inexpensive house brand called 365, but that's not why I'd go there. I love shopping there for treats.
I get most of DS's food at Whole Foods and do the rest of our shopping at Market Basket. WF is definitely more expensive. I try to just to fruits/veggies and organic meat there for DS and the rest of it is conventional stuff for us from the regular store.
A weekly shop at WF for just the essentials (milk, fruit, veggies, yogurt) runs about $80 whereas I can do a full shopping (pantry staples, meat, etc). at MB for the same. We do paper goods, diapers and whatnot at BJs or Target.
I LOL when people say Whole Foods is too expensive... well, you're not comparing apples to apples (sorry for the pun). You can't compare an organic, hormone-free, free-range chicken from a reasonably local farm to a chicken raised on a factory farm, pumped full of hormones. Of course it's more expensive! It is a much more quality product.
OP, congrats on the switch to a healthier lifestyle. If you're looking to start dabbling in the organic world, I would start with your meat, dairy, and the "dirty dozen." (And P.S. - it doesn't have to be organic. WF carries a lot of local but non-organic meat and dairy that lives up to all the organic standards). All else, get at your other grocery store (just be sure to wash all veggies and fruit well).
I spend about $140/week and I get all of my groceries there. Completely worth the price for me to keep those added hormones and pesticides out of my family's bodies.
I work at WF and I think it is funny when people say how expensive they think it is. You're paying pennies more for NATURAL and ORGANIC food. If you buy the 365 brand, you'll actually be saving more money than buying the Publix or Kroger brand. We do comp shops to prove that. Their 365 (store brand) of natural milk is cheaper than Krogers milk by almost 49 cents.
You can get a Whole Deal book when you walk in the door with coupons and such. and if you friend them on FB they will advertise sales and promotions for you area. like the 1.49 lb apple sale they just had, and the .99 lb peach sale.. cant beat that..
Make the switch
I shop there for DD... I alternate between WF and TJs (each have things the other doesn't... TJs is a little less expensive). I have found that the organic milk at WF is the same price as other brands I buy elsewhere. The chicken/beef that I buy is quite pricey but our local grocery stores don't really carry organic meats so this is our only option (and I refuse to feed DD processed, hormone and antibiotic filled meat!) My local stores do carry organic produce but not as wide of a variety as WF.
I buy DD's lunchmeat either there or at TJs... I would prefer that she not eat lunchmeat at all, but she loves it. I also get her organic shredded cheese or string cheese as well as yogurt. I haven't found any bread that I like for DD there, so I get that at TJs.
I try and go 1-2 times/month to either WF or TJs and buy enough to last for awhile. I buy groceries for DH and I at our local grocery store, and I have found some all natural foods there for DD as well. I just read ingredient lists very closely now (and if there are too many ingredients, I pass)
It is expensive but it's worth it to me! We can save in other areas besides DD's health!!