Principles and Guidelines in Buying Food Items

A basic principle when buying food items is to buy the best food. The best food would be those that are fresh, economical, nutritious and yield more servings.

The following are some guidelines on how one can get more from the food budget.

• Buy fresh food. Fresh fish have red gills, bright eyes, scales firmly clinging to the skin, and firm flesh. However, some vendors dip their fish in dye to make their fish look fresh. Fresh meat is tender and smells pleasant. Fresh chickens have yellow, smooth skin, plump breasts and meaty thighs.

• Fresh green leafy vegetables are not wilted. Vegetables like eggplants, tomatoes, potatoes and carrots have firm, smooth skin.

• Fruits and vegetables in season are more economical.

• Good food is not necessarily expensive. Sometimes, the cheaper kind of food is more nutritious. For example, fresh or small dried fish like dilis and tagonton have more nutrients than lapu-lapu or tanguigue. Kangkong and malunggay leaves have a higher nutrient value than cabbages.

• Fresh meats are better buys than cold cuts which have processed with preservatives.

• Lean cuts of meat yield more servings and are more nutritious than cuts with bones and fat.

• For desserts and snacks, fresh fruits which are packed with vitamins and mineral are better choices than candies and soft drinks which are mostly sugar.