Michael Pollen’s motto versus reality

May 20, 10:26 PMKansas City Cooking ExaminerChris Perrin

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“Spend more, eat less.”

This is the advice Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, gave to radio host Steve Kraske on his show Up to Date.  Pollan, an advocate of nutritious, sustainable eating, spoke at length about how we should consume more high-quality meals, avoid junk food, and generally reduce one’s calorie intake.  In other words, we should eat less food, but spend more on it.

This sounds all very well and good, especially coming from someone with Pollan’s knowledge and reputation.  Of course, putting it in practice is another thing entirely.

Who wants to eat less?  For that matter, who wants to spend more on anything than they have to?  Still, I went to the Whole Foods near the intersection of Metcalf and 95th Street in Overland Park, KS, to see if I could follow Pollan’s advice.  I went there because Whole Foods continues to be the mecca of good organic produce, despite efforts by local chains Hen House and Hy-Vee to carry more organic and all natural foods.

One hundred and twenty-five dollars later, I realized that this whole eating less, spending more thing is hard.  Especially since I like to splurge on a few things here and there, like Whole Foods' pizza.

Still, looking back at my shopping run, there are a few things I should have done to keep my bill low:

1. Eat seasonal.  I bought a few things that were not in season, which meant I paid more for them.
2. Avoid specialty or rare produce.  I could not help myself, I picked up a case of “champagne mangos.”  They were easily twice as expensive as regular mangos, though they do have five times as much vitamin C.
3. Have a meal plan.  I ended up with more food in my cart than I actually needed because I wasn’t sure what we were having for dinner.  This meant I overspent.  Planning meals ahead can also help with eating less, too.

So, in the end, I accomplished the “spend more” half of Pollan’s advice.  Sadly, the “eat less” part was a bit harder.  However, practice makes perfect, and I can always give it a try next week.