> These accessible food options come with a premium that I strongly suspect put them out of what a median income household can sustainably afford.

No they don’t. Even my local Walmart has cheap vegetable selections included pre cut versions.

You know what is expensive, though? Meat. There’s still plenty of meat consumption in the median household.

It’s not a price issue.

Meat is really not that expensive compared to even simple vegetables.

Most simple salads are actually more expensive than chicken (boneless thighs, ground meat) per kg!

If you compare the price per kcal, as one really should, the difference becomes absurd.

> Most simple salads are actually more expensive than chicken (boneless thighs, ground meat) per kg!

There are more food options than meat or salads.

Citing salads and leafy greens as the alternative to meat is a common strawman, but there are more food options than those two extremes.

Maraconi and potatoes are cheaper, I grant you that.

> You know what is expensive, though? Meat.

This is no joke. I picked up a 3 pound package of garden variety 80/20 ground beef last week and it was over $20. Maybe I just don't buy it often enough to notice, but that seems far higher than even a few months ago. I would have expected to buy a modest cut of steak for that price.

The premium is surprisingly small (primarily because chopped goods ship better and need less protection than whole ones)

> These accessible food options

First, pre-cut isn't that much more expensive. Second, cutting is an accessibility thing now? A kitchen knife and 5 minute YouTube video should have anyone being to chop/dice without much trouble. And once they learn they will only get faster/better at it allowing them to use whole veggies adding more variety.

> cutting is an accessibility thing now?

Yes, it's a boon esp. for old people who live alone, have mobility or sight issues, and don't trust themselves to hold a knife. It's also a convenience thing, but as you said, the general population can cut things just fine and won't suffer much without it; which isn't the case for this growing demographic.

Whole Foods fresh vegetables prices are comparable to elsewhere, same with some dairy. However, everything else carries a premium and for budget minded people you need to avoid it.

I'm not sure I believe that.

Not to mention the median income (in PPP) is higher in the US all but 4 countries.

https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/median-in...

> These accessible food options come with a premium

On one hand, you a processing step. On the other hand, you can process 'ugly' produce into mince. (Mince also transports more compactly volume-wise.)

The pre-chopped coleslaw mix is like 3 bucks for a huge bag. 1 pound of pre-sliced frozen peppers I think is $2. Some of it depends on where you’re shopping, I’m sure this stuff would be 50-100% more at Whole Foods the next town over.

>The pre-chopped coleslaw mix is like 3 bucks for a huge bag

$2 at Aldi, and I'd happily pay double. Sure beats having to break down (and use) a whole head of cabbage, which are huge.