Juicing on a Budget

Juicing requires a lot of produce which unfortunately doesn't make it the cheapest option, but don't let it hold you back. There are ways to get around it if your budget is tight, so you can still enjoy tasty and nutritious drinks.

Investing in your health and well being is one of the best things one can ever do, and juicing is one of the keys to a healthier life style. Naturally we all have different needs and budgets which influence on how we decide to juice, but here is a few tips and tricks on how to make juicing more affordable.

1) Prioritize: It may sound just too plain simple I know, but really do prioritize! There is surely some things that you can do without, for example candy and sweets (which aren't good for you anyway), so there is room in the budget to buy fresh fruit and vegetables.

2) Planning: Plan ahead and select a few juice recipes for the week and stick to those. Don't complicate things and select lots of different juices for each day (although it's tempting) as it requires a variety of produce which makes it hard to buy in bulk, and up goes the bill. It can also be difficult to get through all the produce before it goes off, so it's important to plan and shop with the correct amount in mind.

3) Have a figure in mind: Roughly add up how much it'll cost to make your planned juices and add it to your shopping list. Naturally look for specials, but try not to get overwhelmed by all the things on offer. Stick to your planned juices.

4) Buy in bulk: Farmer's markets are great places for buying organic produce in bulk, so go there if near one or go to a good fruit and veg store. Base your juicing around ingredients which are easy relatively cheap to buy in bulk, and can easily be used in combination such as oranges, apples, pears, carrots, sweet potatoes, cabbage etc.

5) Buy high water content fruit & veg: As simple as it may sound you'll get more out of your juices if juicing with high water content fruit and veg. You can squeeze a lot more out of an orange or carrot compared to greens e.g. spinach and cilantro.
However, green juices are extremely nutritious, they are actually the most healthy type of juice, so it would be a shame to miss out on the health benefits just because of the cost, so I would still recommend to include them in your budget. Instead skip the sweets such as biscuits and candy etc as mentioned above, so there'll be room in the budget to buy greens. And actually once you stop buying processed foods you'll be surprised how much money you save... and even better.... how much healthier you feel. So plan what green juices you are going to make for the week and stick to the list.

6) Berries: If not in season berries can be ridiculously expensive, so although I don't like saying it, frozen berries can be an option. Juicing is all about fresh produce, so naturally it isn't ideal, but when it comes to adding in a few defrosted strawberries, blueberries or raspberries I think we haven't crossed the line yet :-).

7) Buy fruits and vegetables in season, and base your weekly choices around those ingredients.