"Grand Dave" Haeck puts together a vegetable box in the yard. Grandson Gabriel lends a hand. With rising food prices and the down economy, Haeck and wife ,Stephanie, decided to grow food to help stretch their food budget.

Finding Ways to Live Green in a Down Economy

02/26/2009

It seems easy to live green when you have the means — pay a little extra for that organic tomato or grass–fed beef. You reason that it's pesticide–free, saves the environment, and good for your health. But these days it's hard to buy organic when money is tight. KUOW's Ruby de Luna visits two local families to find out how they manage to maintain a sustainable lifestyle in lean times. Tomorrow, we'll hear how local growers are weathering the recession.

Atkins: "My hardest part of the grocery store is always getting past the table with the chocolate on it, organic or not, it doesn't really matter!"

When it comes to shopping for food, John Atkins prefers organic and local products. We're at a food co–op in Fremont. We walk past the chocolate table and head over to the produce section. Atkins plans to make stir fry for dinner. He eyes the bell peppers. They're on his shopping list, but he decides not to get them.

Atkins: "I typically try to avoid, not that there's anything wrong with organic things grown in Mexico, but it's pretty far; they've been in transit for a long time."

Atkins goes to the next aisle and finds a substitute.

Atkins: "How about some bok choy?"

The bok choy is locally grown. He bags a few bunches and puts them in his basket. Snow peas from California also make the cut. Next stop: the tofu aisle.

Atkins says he and his wife prefer to buy organic and local products — it's part of their commitment to eat healthier, and to reduce their carbon foot print. But like many Americans, the economy has prompted them to adjust their spending habits. In the last quarter, Atkins' consulting business took a hit. His pipeline of clients dried up. But rather than stop buying organics, Atkins looked for other areas to cut back.

Atkins: "Over the last five years or so we were eating out three times a week. So pretty often, being people without children, it was easy for us to go out."

These days Atkins and his wife just go to restaurants for special occasions. They cook a lot more at home. In addition to saving money, they have a good excuse to hang out with their fellow–foodie friends.

Atkins: "We've had sort of a sharing, I guess you can call event. One person would come over to my house and cook me a meal that they learned how to make, and I'd go over to their house and cook them a meal to show them what I like to make. That's a good way of sharing your enjoyment for the food and also to get new ideas."

And often they end up swapping recipes using local ingredients. Around the country, sales in organics aren't as robust as they used to be. But in the Puget Sound area support for natural or locally grown products remains strong. For example, sales at PCC Natural Markets were $133 million last year. Russ Ruby oversees the products that are bought and sold at the stores. He says even though sales are up, people are buying fewer higher ticket items like beauty products. Instead, they're filling their carts with grains, beans, and other basic staples.

Ruby: "Bulk is a good example. Great department for us. Always has been. A lot of emphasis there, not just because of the economic environment we're in, but also seasonally. This is a good time of the year for the bulk food department in particular. You've got soups, different sauces come out of that."

Ruby has also noticed that people are buying more sale items, and deli–made foods — perhaps for those who aren't comfortable cooking from scratch. The down economy has prompted some families to try something new, or look to their backyard for resources.

Haeck: "Alright, that's one piece. No, I got to make another one the same size.

In Pierce County, Stephanie Frieze and her husband Dave Haeck decided to use the yard space next to the garage to grow food. The couple are cutting up lumber to make a vegetable box.

Frieze: "We bought some seeds yesterday. We want to grow pumpkins. Our four year old grandson lives with us so we'd like to grow jack o'lanterns for him, beets for Grand Dave, carrots, lettuce and corn, that's what we got on deck right now."

Frieze says they're gardening novices. But she's willing to undertake this new project so her family can continue to eat organic foods. Like John Atkins, health and the environment drive their food choices. There are financial reasons, too. They want to save money. Frieze works for the peninsula school district, and her job seems secure, but for her husband, things a re little uncertain. Dave Haeck works for Lockheed martin in Seattle, and the company might close that office by the end of the year.

Frieze: "We've actually been talking about doing this for 18 years now and I think that the recession and my husband's job possibly going away was kind of the incentive to, well, let's do more than talk."

Frieze tries to stretch their food budget. She likes to buy as much organics or locally grown food as possible. But that can be a challenge when shopping for a family of six.

Frieze: "It is a difficult balancing act to stretch your money as far as you can. Obviously, the cheapest thing would be to eat Kraft macaroni and cheese."

But that's not option. So they've cut back in other areas. They don't go to many concerts like they used. They rent movies rather than go to the theater. But the family doesn't want to give organics altogether. Frieze plans to continue shopping at their local farmers' markets. She hopes to stretch their food dollars with the vegetable box. And for eggs, she's thinking of putting a chicken coop in their backyard. But she's worried about their dog scaring the chickens.

Frieze: "It occurred to me the other day, oh my goodness, what would his barking do to their little psyches?"

The chicken coop is still up for debate. There's so much to learn about urban farming. But frieze hopes this new adventure will produce good food, and some entertainment along the way. I'm Ruby de Luna, KUOW news.

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