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I heard about this Web site with photos on my local radio show and, when I looked it up I was completely fascinated to see these snapshots of how families spend their food dollars for a one-week period. Not surprisingly, the families from wealthier countries purchased more processed foods but I was astonished to see the amount of purchased drinks, especially soft drinks. I actually chose the photo of this family from Cairo, because it most closely resembled what my family eats.
Statscan, which compiles statistics for all manner of things in Canada released a report showing that Canadians now spend 10 percent of their household income on food, down from 19 percent in the 1960s. Michael Pollan in his book In Defense of Food (2008, Penguin Press) points out that in 1960, Americans spent 17.5 percent of their income on food and 5.2 percent on health care. Currently, Americans spend 9.9 percent on food and 16 percent on health care. One look at the photo of what the American family eats tells you everything you need to know about those statistics.
I've never actually tracked what I spend on food for the week. I think I will tot it all up as I shop this week, and I'll report back to you next Wednesday and tell you what I bought. It's akin to keeping a food diary when you are trying to lose weight. We'll see where my family falls in this spectrum.
Difficulty Level: Easy
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