The price of eating well is one of those arguments in which everyone can produce a receipt. Campaigners point to the cost per calorie of cucumber versus economy pasta. Economists point to the cost per nutrient. Households point to the till.
A basket built on oats, frozen vegetables, tinned tomatoes, lentils, eggs and value fish is still among the cheaper ways to feed a family in 2026. A basket built on protein snacks, branded yoghurts, out-of-season berries and ready meals is not. Both can be called ‘trying to eat better’. Only one is a strategy.
Energy and rent have squeezed the food line. When money is tight, households buy filling calories that will not spoil. Ultra-processed food is engineered for that moment. Telling people to shop like a nutrition editor without a freezer, a bus fare or an hour to cook is an insult.
The policy levers are familiar: wages, targeted cash, healthier supermarket defaults, and meals in schools that do not depend on a parent’s evening. Individual recipes still help, which is why this paper will keep printing them. They are not a substitute for a country in which the good food is also the affordable food.
Until then, the honest headline is this: you can eat a decent British diet without a wellness salary. It is just harder than it should be, and harder in some postcodes than others.