A recent survey by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine and Morning Consult found that a majority of US adults incorrectly believe that a plant-based diet is more expensive than one that includes meat and dairy.
The survey, which polled 2,206 US adults between June 10 and June 12, 2025, revealed that more than 60% of respondents share this view. Baby Boomers were the most likely to think that plant-based eating is significantly more expensive, with 67% of them believing plant-based foods cost somewhat or much more than a typical Standard American Diet.
That’s because they’re comparing normal beef to Beyond Burgers since they can’t fathom the idea of not eating meat.
Probably because the products that are marketed most prominently as being vegan also charge a premium.
Here we find another reason why people find major dietary changes like this unrelatable. We have a headline that says people wrongly think that plant based diets are more expensive, and a comment section largely consisting of comments indicating that we should in fact assume a complete change of cooking habits is something we don’t need to factor in while making this statement. It’s a massive oversimplification.
Many of the cheapest and most filling foods available at any given grocery store or especially at any given convenience store or restaurant contain some sort of animal product, whether that be meat, dairy, or egg. Yes, if you have access and the inclination you can get a lot of ingredients pretty cheaply, and yes raw ingredients tend to follow the pattern of plant based ingredients often being cheaper. But to say that a plant based diet is less expensive is as devoid of nuance as saying it’s more expensive.
If you’re eating a plant based diet exclusively, you certainly do lose access to a wide range of cheap and easily prepared foods. The cheap version of a plant based diet requires either a fair bit of preparation or eating a lot of rice and beans. The version that likely most closely mimics the previous diet of people who aren’t doing a ton of cooking is likely to be more expensive.
This also assumes access to fresh produce and both the facilities and the energy and ability to cook on a regular basis. The cost difference for someone who can’t or simply doesn’t cook every day to have a plant based diet with substantial variety is in fact significantly more expensive.
All that said, it is much more attainable to shift to a diet that leans more heavily on plants while spending about the same amount and not denying oneself access to cheaper foods that might be available or quite as drastically changing one’s habits.
idk dude
The vegan sandwich cheese I buy is 1,29€ / 150g, cheapest animal cheese is 1,59€ / 150g.
The vegan lunch meat I buy is 0,95€ / 100g, the cheapest animal lunch meat of the same kind (Mortadella) is 1,49€ / 100g.
The vegan butter I buy is 1,59€ / 200g, the cheapest animal butter I could find is 1,99€ / 250g (equivalent to 1,59€ / 200g).
Bread is usually vegan either way.Making a sandwich isn’t crazy cooking
Yeah, all of this, its a lot cheaper if you cook the majority of your meals from scratch, but the vast majority of people aren’t cooking the majority of their meals from scratch.
Why is a black bean burger $17 then?
It’s called capitalism. Specifically, it’s how market price is set.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/market-price.asp
Consumer surplus is the difference between the highest price consumers are willing to pay for a product and the actual price they pay, or the market price.
Economic surplus is comprised of two related quantities: consumer surplus and producer surplus. Producer surplus is profit: It is the amount over cost that a producer obtains by selling at the market price, provided that the market price is higher than the minimum that they would be willing to sell for.
People care way too little now about who sets prices.
Those black bean burgers are sold under a strategy of “luxury pricing” or “premium pricing” or “value based pricing”. Which is basically: “how much are you willing to pay?” https://www.investopedia.com/terms/v/valuebasedpricing.asp
Value-based pricing is a strategy of setting prices primarily based on a consumer’s perceived value of a product or service. Value-based pricing is customer-focused, meaning companies base their pricing on how much the customer believes a product is worth.
Value-based pricing is different from cost-plus pricing, which factors the costs of production into the pricing calculation. Companies that offer unique or highly valuable features or services are better positioned to take advantage of the value-based pricing model than companies that chiefly sell commoditized items.
A lot of people live with the deeply wrong belief that prices are set based on the cost of production plus some % added on top to make a profit.
Unfortunately because it’s niche on the menu. It’s normally a neglected item (Sysco frozen). Most black bean burger enjoyers stay home bc this
You can get a pack of 4, I think, frozen black bean burger patties from morning star for like $5.
Yeah they are $3.85 (before tax) for a pack of 4 from the Aldi near me. And they taste good too. Of course they are going to be more expensive at a restaurant, but that’s true for nearly everything.
Make them yourself. Stop buying processed crap, vegan or not.
Exactly. A can of black beans doesn’t cost $17 lmao
If you don’t change the menu, but substitute processed products for meat, then it very much is more expensive. If you change what you’re eating entirely, and go after the no/low processed route, you can do pretty well.
Having cut a bunch of things out of my diet due to food sensitivities, I routinely see people struggle to imagine what dining looks like for me. A lot of folks have a very fixed view of cuisine and the day-to-day of making meals at home. All I had to do was eat less “American” food and more “East Asian” food; suggesting this makes some heads explode. IMO, a lot of people are not prepared to change that much, and will conjure any plausible excuse to avoid that struggle.
It’s important to recognize that many people don’t have convenient access to anything other than processed garbage. It’s great you had the ability to completely shift your dietary norms, but people living in food deserts don’t have the same opportunities you do. People’s dietary limitations are often shaped by experience, access, and affordability.
Which just makes it even more important that people with the privilege to change their diet for the better - people with access to fresh food and home kitchens and time to cook - take advantage of that and change their diet.
And that people fight, through collective action, for policies that make it easier for more people to change their diet, such as community groceries and farmers’ markets in food deserts, higher minimum wages and better worker protections to give people more time and energy to cook, and so forth.
Recognizing that eating healthy is a privilege shouldn’t discourage you from eating healthy. It should encourage you to fight to get more people that privilege.
Beans are cheap.
Many Americans think meat, starch, & veg…instead of actual nutrients per ingredient. Also, the idea of all or nothing is pragmatic. I believe if you promote a flexitarian diet ideal, you will do far more for the vegan ideal than anything else at this point.
Also give any doubters a falafel pita/wrap
Beans turn me into a living human rights violation. Give me a can of beans and I will make the trenches of Belgium look like a fucking rose garden compared to this room.
I’m stealing flexitarian. Is this where you just eat less meat?
I started this a few months ago — I allow myself white meat twice a week and red meat once a month. Better for me, my wallet, and the planet. The hope is that I am able to gradually try things and find alternatives. Only worry is that I talk about it too much.
Flexitarian is a pretty well established term.
Pretty much.
Being a good cook and being able to look at a meal without meat being the center point will really change people’s view on pursuit towards veganism
Edit: not to diss fake meat, but the majority of it sucks as a replacement. Gotta highlight the ingredients for what they are
Was talking to friends about how they spend on average $100-200 on meat when they go grocery shopping.
I don’t get it.
well, they objectively and most definitely are. you know those extra five-eight years of life expectancy they give? how much more d’you think those would cost?!
Americans having to meet the Loma Linda standard of 87 years instead of 79. Ooooh the horror!
I eat a plant based diet and it is definitely not more expensive, but in a utopian society that didn’t give massive subsidies to big meat and big dairy, it would be a lot cheaper. The fact that soy milk is more expensive than regular milk boggles the mind. The cows are eating the soybeans, but liquid made from the soybean directly is somehow more expensive than milk from a cow.
Rice, a veggie and a protein all day everyday.
The issue is that for a lot of these people their idea of a plant based diet is an analogous to what they currently eat, and products that emulate that are quite expensive. Bean tacos are cheaper than beef tacos, but imitation ground beef tacos are more expensive.
Perhaps it’s a lack of imagination on the part of people and perhaps it’s that the marketing of plant based diets has largely been pushed in the mainstream by companies offering premium meat substitutes.
TVP is a lot cheaper than either and analogous.
Real problem is people don’t know how to cook.
