If you invite people to a barbecue this summer, you have to dig even deeper into your pockets than last year. It is particularly expensive for lovers of beef, lamb and co. Red meat in particular has now become a luxury product. You can hardly find a kilo of beef loin for less than 30 euros, and it is not uncommon for a kilo of fillet to cost 40 euros. Should the whole thing then also be organic, then the pain threshold is quickly reached. Feeding carnivores has never been more expensive than it is in 2023. Meat prices are not expected to recover in the future either.
Nevertheless, we would like to give the all-clear at this point. Because a well-planned carnivore diet is not necessarily more expensive than alternative forms of nutrition. Below we have compiled our top carnivore savings tips for you.
Eggs as vitamin bombs
Organic eggs are an affordable and high-quality source of protein. A whole chicken egg has a biological value of 100, surpassed only by whey protein. The biological value expresses how efficiently proteins from food can be converted into endogenous proteins.
Just 3 medium-sized eggs cover 100% of the daily requirement of vitamin K, B7 (biotin) and vitamin B12 and supply the body with almost 100% of the required branched-chain amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine, also better known to many under the abbreviation BCAAs.
Ground beef as a cheap steak alternative
In addition to eggs, minced beef forms the perfect basis for a carnivore diet and, at around 15 euros per kilo, is significantly cheaper than loin or fillet. Even if it can't keep up with loin and co in terms of taste, the organic minced meat doesn't have to hide when it comes to nutritional content. On the contrary: the micronutrient profile of minced meat is much better suited to a ketogenic, carnivore diet due to its higher fat content. 100 g of minced meat provide 14 g of fat. In addition, minced meat contains particularly high concentrations of the amino acids glycine, proline and hydroxyproline, which form the main components of collagen.
Offal as a cheap superfood
Offals such as liver, kidney or heart are not to everyone's taste, but they are often significantly cheaper than other types of meat with an extremely high nutrient density. Liver is the undisputed champion among carnivore foods and is packed with B vitamins, trace elements and contains more vitamin A per gram than any other food. Even usable concentrations of vitamin C are contained in the animal superfood. 100 grams of liver contains 27 mg of the essential vitamin. Offal is often available cheaply from the local butcher or slaughterhouse butchers.
But be careful: Daily consumption of offal (especially liver) in large quantities can lead to an oversupply of certain nutrients (e.g. vitamin A intoxication). Offal is only suitable as a meal to a limited extent and should not be eaten more than once a week. If you can't get used to the taste of liver, kidney and co. and still don't want to do without the vitamin boost, take 2-3 grams of freeze-dried organic beef liver capsules daily with meals. This corresponds to about 9 g of fresh liver.
Canned fish as a cheap omega 3 supplier
Canned fish such as tuna, sardines or mackerel are an inexpensive way to incorporate high-quality omega-3 fatty acids into the carnivore diet . Due to the extremely long shelf life of canned fish, it is worth buying larger quantities if tuna, sardines or herring are on offer. It can make sense to have an emergency ration with you, especially on vacation, on business trips or for a weekend trip. It is preferable to buy canned fish in their own juice or with olive oil. Avoid cheap vegetable oils like canola or sunflower oil.
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Bulk purchases are worthwhile
You can often save money, especially when buying large quantities of meat. Many butcher shops give discounts for larger purchase quantities. Some farmers have their animals professionally slaughtered and butchered and sell larger packages of meat (various parts of beef) at consumer-friendly prices.
Buying eggs straight from the farm not only saves money, but also ensures that the animals are kept in a species-appropriate manner. Crowd farming websites like kaufnekuh.de enable customers to order larger quantities of meat directly from the farmer. That saves time and money.
Furthermore, meat and fish can be frozen extremely well and, if stored correctly, are often still suitable for consumption months later. Rule of thumb for storing meat: Storage temperature from -18°C to -20°C. Beef can be kept for up to 12 months, chicken meat for up to 9 months.
Fats are an important part of the carnivore diet and the main source of energy production in the body. Animal fats such as lard, butter or beef fat are often less expensive than high-quality vegetable oils such as olive or coconut oil and are excellent for frying and cooking. Organic butter differs only slightly in price from conventional butter and should be bought preferably.
Be careful with heated animal fats: especially at the beginning of the carnivore diet, too much liquid animal fat can have a laxative effect, since the body has not yet adapted the bile production to the increased fat consumption of a carnivore diet. Ox bile may potentially help assist the body in metabolizing fat.
Save time with carnivore nutrition
According to Eurostat, Germans spend 1 hour and 35 minutes a day eating and an average of 35 minutes in the supermarket (Statista 2018). Unfortunately, the latest figures on eating behavior are from 2018, when delivery services and online supermarkets were not yet booming. Nonetheless, we believe that, conservatively, at least 100 minutes a day are spent shopping and eating. If you also include preparation and washing up, then most Germans should break the two-hour mark every day.
We are convinced that you can save at least half an hour a day with a carefully planned carnivore diet. Because by cutting out all non-animal foods, you're focusing on one or two nutrient-dense meals a day. Almost a quarter of all meat eaters get by with one meal a day. The English OMAD (One Meal A Day) is enjoying increasing popularity in the carnivore community.
The shopping list for carnivore nutrition also remains manageable. The list mainly states meat, fish, eggs and possibly dairy products. No annoying searching for products or comparing nutritional tables, ingredients or additives. The focus is on high quality animal products, most of which can all be found in the same place in the supermarket.
Time is also often saved during preparation. Meat and eggs usually go directly from the fridge to the pan, while fruit and vegetables often have to be peeled, cut or cooked first. The restriction to a few, high-quality foods simplifies the preparation and keeps the washing up to a minimum.
How you ultimately value your time is just as subjective as your current eating habits, or the willingness to adjust them accordingly.
Meat isn't cheap, no question about it. Nevertheless, we believe that people with lower incomes can also afford to live Carnivore. And without having to compromise on the meat quality. The list is intended only to serve as a first port of call for people interested in carnivore nutrition without breaking the bank. Do you still have money-saving tips that are not included in our article? Then let us and our community members know in the comments.