Buy Organic Without Breaking the Bank

ORGANIC FOODS MAY be healthier for you, but they can have a sickening effect on your wallet.

Set some priorities

You'll get the most bang for your buck by buying organic apples, beef and spinach. That's because the conventional counterparts to these foods are laden with pesticides and potentially harmful additives (see chart below). Produce like papayas, bananas and broccoli require less pesticide to grow, thereby retaining little to no residue after washing. (The peels on bananas and other tropical fruits further reduce your exposure).

Should You Buy Organic?
Category	Worth It	Not Worth It
Fruits	Apples, cherries, grapes, pears, berries, peaches, nectarines, plums	Bananas, kiwi, mangoes, papaya, pineapples, oranges
Vegetables	Celery, potatoes, spinach, bell peppers, lettuce, tomatoes, green beans	Asparagus, avocados, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet corn, onions, sweet peas
Meat/Dairy	Beef, pork, poultry, eggs and dairy	Seafood
Other	Baby food	Processed food (chips, pasta, etc.), cleaning products, cosmetics

* Data from "Eating Between the Lines," Environmental Working Group and Consumer Reports.

Consider your alternatives

Prices on organic meats, eggs and dairy products can be some of the most exorbitant. The culprit: A lack of the organic feed for the animals, says Stewart. So if you can't stomach prices for organics, consider antibiotic- or hormone-free foods. While the animals may have eaten regular feed, they meet the other half of organic requirements — no hormones or antibiotics. At online grocer FreshDirect, a half-gallon of Horizon organic milk is $3.99, while the same size Farmland antibiotic-free milk is $2.19.

Organic goes on sale, too

Conventional discount shopping wisdom also applies to organic goods. Grocery stores frequently put organic foods on sale, so keep an eye out for coupons or discounts advertised in their circulars. Shop Rite's July 15-21 circular, for example, touts organic bananas for 69 cents per pound (the same price as conventional ones) and organic Stonyfield Yogurt at 10 for $6.99 (a break of 19 cents each off the usual price of 89 cents).

Turn to local farmers

Your local farmers' market can be a great place to buy organic food. That's because a combination of seasonality and competition helps keep prices down, says Rangan. At New York's famous Union Square Greenmarket, organic and conventional tomatoes were both recently $1.50 per pound.

Consider generics

Supermarket chain Meijer has Meijer Organics, Giant Eagle has Nature's Basket and Publix has GreenWise Market. Many supermarkets are adding organic lines to their private labels, a move that allows shoppers to buy organic at significant discounts over big-name brands, says Teri Gault, founder of The Grocery Game, a program that helps consumers match manufacturers' coupons with store sales. At Safeway, a 20-ounce bottle of store-brand O Organics ketchup is $2.45, a steal compared with the 15-ounce bottle of Heinz Organic at $3.79. Considering price per ounce, you'll save 49%.

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