Veganism is often associated with high-end, specialty foods, but how true is that? Is a vegan diet really cheaper than one that includes animal products? To find out, I analyzed over 11,000 food products from a local supermarket in the Netherlands. After scraping the data from Albert Heijn, the largest supermarket chain in the country, I compared the cheapest sources of calories and protein to see if vegan food is really more affordable.
The Surprising Answer: Vegan Food Is Cheaper
Yes, to my surprise, vegan food is actually cheaper than animal-based food overall. However, this is not true for all diets. For certain macronutrient requirements, animal-based products can actually be cheaper.
In this video, I’ll walk you through the findings, share some surprising results, and explain for which scenarios vegan food can be more expensive. Let’s dive in!
Why Should We Care About Veganism?
Before we get into the numbers, let’s quickly touch on why many people are considering a vegan diet. Avoiding meat and dairy is one of the biggest ways to reduce our environmental impact on earth. There’s also the ethical dilemma surrounding industrial farming practices. We get that reducing animal products is important for these reasons—but is it affordable?
According to recent research, the answer seems to be “yes.” A study from Oxford concluded that in high-income countries, vegan diets are up to one-third cheaper than typical diets. Yet, veganism often gets linked to high-end foods like specialty meats and dairy alternatives. So, I wanted to see for myself how affordable vegan products are in a supermarket setting.
The Data: How I Analyzed 11,000 Products
I decided to conduct my analysis at Albert Heijn, the largest supermarket chain in the Netherlands. The store’s website lists every product, indicates whether it’s vegan, and provides detailed nutritional facts—perfect for scraping data. I used a Python script to collect information from their online catalog, which resulted in more than 11,320 products to analyze.
Before we dive into the findings, I should note that the results may be outdated or not 100% accurate. There were a few assumptions made, and you can find more details about them in the video description. Also, the prices are in euros (€), but they should be fairly comparable to U.S. dollars.
Conclusion 1: The Cheapest Sources of Calories Are Vegan
After processing the data, my first finding was clear: the cheapest sources of calories are vegan. This aligns with the Oxford study and applies to the Netherlands as well.
To find this out, I analyzed how much 2000 kcal (the daily consumption for an average adult) would cost in different foods. Here’s the surprising part: the 10 cheapest sources of calories were all vegan.
- Wheat Flour came out as the cheapest, at just 46 cents per 2000 kcal. This means an average adult could theoretically survive on a diet of just wheat flour for only 46 cents a day—extremely cheap!
- The remaining spots on the list were filled by other types of flour, sugar, and white rice—again, all common, accessible, and cheap plant-based foods.
Conclusion 2: The Cheapest Sources of Protein Are Also Vegan… Mostly
Next, I wanted to analyze cheap sources of protein. Again, I ranked the foods based on the price per gram of protein, and once again, the results were surprising. Flour topped the list with 72 cents per 100 grams of protein, once again making it the cheapest source of protein. It turns out that all of the top 10 cheapest sources of protein were vegan.
When I asked my friends to guess the cheapest sources of protein, they mostly said things like chicken, eggs, and chicken breast. But it turns out these animal-based options are significantly more expensive.
If you’re wondering about the foods in the thumbnail (meat and dairy products), I’ve included them here as well—and yes, they’re even more expensive.
But Wait: Is Flour Really a Good Protein Source?
You might be thinking, “Flour as a protein source? That can’t be right!” And you’re right—flour is not a high-quality source of protein. It may be cheap, but it’s mostly carbohydrates. While it provides some protein, it’s mostly giving you calories from carbs. For example, flour contains about 11 grams of protein, 1 gram of fat, and 72 grams of carbs per 342 calories. This means only 13% of the calories come from protein.
So, while flour is cheap, it’s not practical as a standalone source of protein, especially if you’re on a high-protein diet.
Conclusion 3: For Certain Diets, Animal Products Can Be Cheaper
As we saw earlier, flour may be a cheap source of protein, but it doesn’t provide enough to meet higher protein needs. If you’re aiming for a diet that requires more protein, such as a weight-training regimen or a keto diet, animal-based products can be cheaper and more efficient.
For instance, I increased the threshold for protein percentage to 40%, and suddenly, animal-based products like yogurt and chicken livers appeared in the ranking. These animal-based products were able to provide higher protein percentages, but they also came with a higher cost per gram of protein compared to vegan options.
So, if you’re looking for foods with at least 40% protein, you’ll start to see animal products making their way into the top spots, with options like chicken livers and certain types of yogurt being notably cheaper than many vegan alternatives.
Conclusion 4: Low-Carb Diets Favor Animal Products
When I shifted the analysis to low-carb, high-protein foods (such as those favored in keto diets), animal-based products took the lead. Even when restricting the data to foods that provide at least 20% protein and no more than 20% carbs, most of the top contenders were sausages, hamburgers, and chicken.
The only vegan food to make it to the list was tofu, and it didn’t rank as highly as animal products for the low-carb, high-protein scenario. This shows that if you’re following a low-carb diet, animal products are likely to be more affordable and practical.
Final Thoughts: Vegan Food Is Affordable, but Context Matters
So, what have we learned? Vegan food generally has the cheapest sources of calories and protein, but for certain diets—like those requiring high protein or low carbs—animal-based products can be cheaper.
At the end of the day, the choice of diet is highly personal. It depends on your preferences, ethical beliefs, and dietary needs. Veganism can be affordable for many people, but if you’re trying to hit specific macronutrient targets, especially higher protein requirements or low-carb needs, animal-based products might be the better option.
In conclusion, whether vegan food is cheap depends on what you’re looking for. For general calorie and protein needs, it’s a great option—but if your diet demands higher protein or fewer carbs, you may need to consider animal-based foods for better cost-effectiveness.
What’s Your Take?
Have you found vegan food to be cheaper in your country or local supermarket? Let me know in the comments below!
