"they ate fast food and junk food but had splashed out of a plasma TV."

[ConfusedPixie]

This comment just came up on the radio news, supposedly said by Jamie Oliver about one of the families he was working with in his new TV show.

AIBU to wonder how the fuck what you eat relates to what TV you have?

Surely this just reinforces stereotypes of the people likely to have bad diets through lack of education on the matter? What a bullshit statement.

[OhshitwhatnowagIn]

They really are, aren't they creatures.

I've given perfect examples, all ignored for "they just need to learn."

Yes, it's 'them' and 'us' isn't it?

[OhshitwhatnowagIn]

WHAT examples? Examples of fresh food from a store that are cheaper than the frozen items?

I must have missed those links, people clearly missed mine so it's obviously a common mistake.

Would you mind linking all yours again?

Would you like me to link all mine again?

[Sirzy]

oh shit if you don't want to read the thread then dont. One point compairing a perfectly acceptable food (which someone has already posted how it could be made into an even better mean) with something known for being expensive doesn't prove anything.

[CreatureRetorts]

It's not a badly made point Sirzy.

People make choices about junk food because it is easier and that's what they know.

If you have any empathy, you'd try and understand why they made those choices then persuade them of easy options to cook from scratch instead of waving ridiculous ideas about lentils and chickpeas in their faces, which is far removed from what people know and feel comfortable with. That's how you change behaviour. Instead of patronising and making comments as Jamie Oliver is doing.

If it were that easy then we'd all be doing it, surely.

[FreudiansSlipper]

i have been poor, very poor it is not a them and us it is about healthy eating and some people make excuses forget about the tv

i got an indian takeaway for 3 yesterday it cost me £20 that is one meal with a little left over for lunch today

[wannabedomesticgoddess]

Fast food is absolutely more expensive than cooking from scratch if its for more than one person.

But ready meals in supermarkets are often cheaper than buying the ingredients needed to make the same meal.

There was a programme on recently where chefs tried to make a meal from a persons benefit "daily food budget" and one of the chefs held up a smart price family lasagne and admitted that there was no way he could recreate it cheaper.

They might be poor quality, but for someone who has very little money they are an option for a filling meal.

Let's not forget that the cost of equipment to cook (oven dishes, utensils, decent pans) and the lack of cooking ability, often make ready meals the only option.

[CreatureRetorts]

I will also add I cook 99% of my meals from scratch, but I know people who don't or can't and I can see why. Plenty of people with loads of money do it, so why aren't they lambasted?

[OhshitwhatnowagIn]

YES fast food is more expensive. Way, way more expensive.

Are we talking about fast food here, or junk (as opposed to fresh) food?

[Sirzy]

If you have any empathy, you'd try and understand why they made those choices then persuade them of easy options to cook from scratch instead of waving ridiculous ideas about lentils and chickpeas in their faces

At no point have I mentioned lentils and chickpeas and I have already said the battle is to educate people to be able to make better choice when it comes to food so I am unsure exactly what point you are trying to prove?

[Wheresmycaffeinedrip]

The sooner they bring back home economics the better. Not the plan a sandwich for six weeks kind. The kind where you chose something and cooked it. It's really scary how these days how no one even has a basic idea of how to cook.

And educating people how to source things as cheaply as possible would also be a good idea. The kids might then even be able to pass the ideas on to their family. Even swapping take away once a week could help.

[OhshitwhatnowagIn]

I cook from scratch too, apart from about two days at the end of the month when Im so broke I cannot afford £4 on beef and the rest on fresh veg, when its far cheaper to spend 55p on some beans, £1 on chips and £1 on fish fingers. To feed a whole family.

[OhshitwhatnowagIn]

"At no point have I mentioned lentils and chick peas"

No, you haven't mentioned any examples actually. Have you?

[Sirzy]

Are we talking about fast food here, or junk (as opposed to fresh) food?

We are talking about both. For many with poor diets their diets are made up of too much fast food and 'junk' and not enough well balanced meals.

What we need is for schools to teach children how to put together a spag bol from scratch on a budget, how to budget well and ideas such as bulk cooking and freezing which can help bring costs down.

[Sirzy]

I have mentioned the fact that you can get things like basic packs of meat from places like farmfoods very cheap. They can then be made into casseroles (which can be bulked up nicely) or meals on their own with veg and potoatos.

Other people have given plenty of other ideas about things which can be done. Much more realistic ones than your own comparision.

[Mumsyblouse]

He blames the individual, but I blame the system that provides the cheapest food as nutritionally devoid nasty hormone filled rubbish. If you go to some of the supposedly poorer European countries, the poor there eat much better than here as there is a lot of very cheap fresh produce available, not artificially ripened, much fewer biscuits/cakes and the meat doesn't bubble with sugar water when cooked.

Eating healthily in the UK is very hard and very expensive, even if you eat lots of lentils (why is everything improved by lentils as some imply on MN?)

[HoneyDragon]

Eating healthily and cheaply does not mean avoiding the foods Jamie bitches about.

Fish fingers with frozen vegetables and some oven chips is hardly self harm or child abuse.

[Supertrooper88]

He should be glad they can at least watch his TV show.

[OneStepCloser]

With comments like that all JO is going to do is rile people and make sure they wont watch his programmes and buy his book. Hes a rent a gob and much too self important. Talking about big tvs is patronising and totally irrelevant yet goading, nice bit of publicity for himself.

I cook from scratch because I have the time, Vegetarian and I actually really like cooking, but it does take a while to build up a good store cupbaord. I hate it when someone says it easy to make a good tasty nutrious meal using a tin of corned beef, lentils and pasta, no wonder people dont fancy it.

I do think its a shame that home economics is not taught now, but the worlds changed, I learnt from my mum but lots of woman work now and dont have the time, most of us shop in Supermarkets which are really expensive, we use to shop in little independent shops which were much cheaper then.

[Sirzy]

Another pick part of the issue is the way certain things are being sold as healthy when infact they are far from it. But tackling the advertisers and shops which do this would be an impossible battle unfortunately. People often think they are buying well because of the way products are sold when infact a cheaper alternative would be nutritionally much better!

[Faverolles]

I imagine if you are from a family brought up on frozen chips and pizza, with no example set for good home cooked food, when you have children of your own, it's normal to feed them nuggets and chips.

Education is a huge part of it, but until schools teach proper life skills - budgeting, basic nutrition and actually cooking cheap, healthy meals, teaching how to meal plan etc., the problem is going to stay the same.

It's all very well the Jamie Olivers of the world spouting about the state of the country from their position of privilege, but it's a rare person to break away from their upbringing, going against the things they were taught as they were growing up. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree and all that.

[Sirzy]

big part not pick part!

[MrsTedMosby]

We were on benefits last year for a while. And we have a flat screen TV - but it was bought years ago, we didn't buy it while on benefits. I think people forget things like that, that these things have been around for years it's not like people are just now splashing out on them. Some may be I guess.

Normally we eat really well, home cooked stuff, but on benefits we had pennies sometimes to buy food from. That meant we had to buy shit, like Asda Smart Price Super Noodles for 11p a packet. One of those, mixed with some mixed veg would be our dinner. That was all we could afford. I hated it, but what else could we do? Luckily the kids had free school dinners for that time, so they were getting a decent-ish hot meal at school. I usually ate cereal for breakfast and lunch. Other stuff like 84p for 4 pies, and 93p bag of chips had to do us. Not great, but when you have to walk around the shop with cash and a calculator so you don't spend a penny more than you have you need the cheapest items, and they're not going to be great nutritionally.

Being on benefits is not the great ride some people seem to think it is. It was soul destroying and left us in a great amount of debt.

[farrowandbawl]

It's got nothing to do with the TV. It's all about knowing how to budget not just with your money but food too.

Some stuff is cheaper frozen, like fish but in general it is cheaper to cook from scratch. You can't blame people for not cooking if no-one showed them how to cook and budget in the first place.

The first time you start to cook from scratch it's a lot more expensive than subsequent times as you already have some of the ingredients in the cupboards. That first shop though can be a killer to get everything that you need in and it's this that puts people off who are on a low budget. You don't think, well, I wont need to buy that next time as I already have some, you think, oh bloody hell, I can't afford that. When you are a low income it's hard to think long term in terms of shopping, it's what can you get with the money you have right now. It's draining.

This argument comes around time and time again. It's not those who eat ready meals who are at fault, it's their parents for not teaching them how to cook, it's the government for slashing the school's budgets so much there isn't the money for cooking lessons or the staff to teach children how to cook.

[CreatureRetorts]

No you havent Sirzy, apologies.

My point is that it is easy to buy and cook junk than it is to buy and cook up a casserole (to use your example). I find it an effort - but I know how to do it.

If you don't, then it's a big deal to be expected to make the change and you certainly won't do it if people patronise you and say "oh but it's easy". It's a whole change in mindset.

[HoneyDragon]

I find Jamie frustrating, I don't think he is the right person to teach cooking on a budget.

Especially when his cookery books are £20.00 each.