How Much Does Eating Organic
Cost?
Christine Selvy
Jess Stehr
Tyler Wood
Organic vs. Non-Organic
• Organic food:
– Produced using environmentally sound methods
• Lack:
– Pesticides and chemical fertilizers
– GMOs
• Are not processed using:
– Irradiation
– Industrial solvents
– Chemical food additives
How much does eating organic cost?
1. We each wrote down 11 items that we would
typically buy when going to the grocery store.
2. We collaborated and determined which items
between the three of us were the most common.
3. We went to Safeway in downtown Portland and
compared prices of these items per unit (e.g.
price per ounce/pound) and recorded them.
Food Comparisons
Item
Organic Brand and Price
Non-Organic Brand and Price
Peanut butter
Maranatha 31.2¢/oz.
Simply Jif 17.2¢/oz.
Whole grain bread
Dave’s Killer Bread 20.0¢/oz.
Franz 16.9¢/oz.
Cereal
Cascadian Farm Honey Nut O’s
45.1¢/oz.
General Mills Honey Nut
Cheerios 26.5 ¢/oz.
1% milk
Safeway Organic 4.8¢/oz.
Lucerne 2.4¢/oz.
Apple juice
Safeway Organic 6.3¢/oz.
Safeway 4.7¢/oz.
Banana
Dole Organics 89¢/lb.
Chiquita 89¢/lb.
Oats and Honey granola Barbara’s 74.3¢/oz.
bar
Nature Valley 33.6¢/oz.
Boneless, skinless
chicken breast
Safeway Organic $8.99/lb.
Eating Right $3.99/lb.
Carrot
Earthbound Farms $1.80/lb.
Eating Right $1.25/lb.
Spinach
Safeway Organics 79.8¢/oz.
Fresh Express 54.9¢/oz.
Chamomile tea
Traditional Medicinal 32.9¢/oz.
Celestial 18¢/oz.
Food Comparison: Produce
2
1.5
1
0.5
1.8
0.89
Organic
1.25
Non-Organic
0.64
0
Bananas
Carrots
Product
Price of Spinach per Ounce
Price (cents)
Price (dollars)
Price of Bananas and Carrots per Pound
100
50
79.8
54.9
Organic
Non-Organic
0
Spinach
Product
Food Comparison: Grains
Price of Products per Ounce
80
70
Price (cents)
60
50
40
74.3
Organic
30
Non-Organic
45.1
20
10
20
16.9
25.5
33.6
0
Whole Grain Bread
Cereal
Product
Granola Bar
Food Comparison: Beverages
Price of product per Ounce
35
Price (cents)
30
25
20
32.9
15
10
18
5
0
Organic
4.8
2.4
Milk 1%
6.3
4.7
Apple Juice
Product
Chamomille Tea
Non-Organic
Food Comparison: Protein
Price of Peanut butter per
Ounce
Price of Chicken per Pound
35
Price (cents)
25
20
15
10
Organic
31.2
17.2
5
0
Peanut Butter
Product
Nonorganic
Price (dollars)
30
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Organic
8.99
3.99
Boneless Skinless
Chicken Breast
Product
Nonorganic
Food Comparison: Overall Price
Price of All Food Purchased Together (One Pound per Item)
$60.00
Price (dollars)
$50.00
$40.00
$30.00
$53.79
Organic
$20.00
$33.58
$10.00
$0.00
All food
Product
Non-Organic
Conclusion
• In general, organic foods are more expensive to
buy at the store.
– One must take into consideration the resources used
in the production and transportation of the food to
the consumer
• Non-organic foods are more likely to go on sale
because of greater supply and demand.
• The average income of the population inclines
people to buy non-organic because of its
cheapness.
– Contributes to higher supply and demand of nonorganics vs. organic