Lots of good ideas here. The key is in planning ahead and making a list. It's possible to make a pound of ground beef feed six - I did it for 30 years. My hubby was happy to take a plastic container of last night's leftover dinner to nuke at work for lunch the next day. [I know, that was before we knew that nuked food was bad for ya, and besides, he's up in heaven now anyway]. I'd make a huge stir-fry over the weekend and pack it in 8-oz. deli containers to go with me to work all week. And you all will gasp, but I did not nuke this container; it sat in my desk all morning and by noon had reached room temperature, and I ate it.

Two statements in this article bothered me, though. The crisper in your refrigerator is expressly made to keep fresh vegetables fresh. It's absurd to forget what's in it. Use it for the purpose it was intended and your food will stay fresher longer.

And if your kids watch tv, I would suggest leaving them home when you shop, otherwise they will be crying for the sugary cereals and other treats they see touted on the tube. Mine watched Saturday morning cartoons but they knew better than to ask for junk food! One of my sons, it's true, could detect tofu in the shopping cart from three aisles away....

The biggest money-saver in that article was the advice about where to buy herbs and spices. I once picked up three of them for canning pickles or relishes, I forget, but the price tag for the three was over nine bucks at the supermarket. I had second thoughts and went up the road a few blocks to the natural foods store, where I purchased the same three items, bagged in plastic, in larger quantities, for a total of $1.86. Then I went back to the supermarket, produced my receipt and got refunded the price of the three items. No, I am NOT making this up! Petty? Maybe, but when you are on a tight budget, these things matter.

priororitizing is the main key to budgeting.  The problem is, what is your priority? 

When it comes to cloths, artifacts, high tech, and other materialistic items, where do you drew the line?

I drew the line on materialistic items, and because I did, I shop for food and high quality food, at the best places and do not have to worry about my health.

Nice article! I think we really need to dispel the myth that healthy is expensive. It's the processed junk that is pricey! The second tip is especially good - it's worth it to spend an hour on Sunday chopping up veggies or baking a whole batch of chicken breasts for the week. If you make it easy on yourself, you'll eat right! Hat tip: here's a similar article with ten specific steps for eating healthy on a budget from a few months back.

True, we do go for the bells and whistles. This is a big selling point for food companies and grocery stores. If it is in a can, pretty box or package with colorful pictures, do not buy it. Healthy items are not marketed like this. They are very plain in appearance.
Problems with the article:
1. Meat, preferably local pasture fed, should be more than an ingredient for many. The article was written by and R.D. for the USDA. R.D.'s are taught that meat, especially beef, clogs arteries and causes disease, and that grains should be the bulk of the diet. Not for most of us.
2. I would be careful about buying things in those bulk containers, especially grains and spices. They are not very high in fat, but most of the fat is polyunsaturated. This type of storing can cause the oils to go rancid. Not good.
3. "Put snacks with life spans of months and years in the crisper". WHAT!
DO NOT eat anything that can be stored in anyway for months and years.
4. This will probably cause some disagreement among carb types, but I would not eat any boxed cereal. I can understand something like steel cut oats for carby's.
5. Do not eat dried fruits. They are sugar pellets. Use fresh fruit.
The suggestions in this article would improve most Americans diets greatly, but it is not good enough. It is like going from horrible to fair. Am I being nit picky. Yes, but our health is the most important thing we have, by far. I believe that all of the things we love, our family, friends, etc., should be enjoyed FULLY. If you are just feeling fair you are cheating yourself. If you have kids, it is even more important to go the extra mile as they will learn best by your actions.

There remains an aspect of dietary intake not being discussed here, and literally the Bull Elephant in the Parlor, everyone is pretending does not exist (pink and winged perhaps also)...

2/3rds of all meals are eaten outside the home in America.

What does this mean?

Well, for one, it means the vast majority of dietary and caloric intake is not even disclosed to most consumers, and in many cases, to create products that satiate, the amounts/quantities are over portioned because of their lack of nutrient content, as well as reduced offactory smell/fragrance, from real natural or organic and unprocessed sources.

SUPER SIZE ME, out on DVD, is but one example of many thousands.

Couple this with the capitalist profit motive, and the net result is the most over fed, under nourished, obese, and disease ridden population in the history of human dietary consumption.

In Australia, McDonald's is require by law to post the dietary breakdowns of every single menu item and combinations of menu items in a pamphlet, which is HIGHLY DECEPTIVELY, covered in dark green leafy vegetables, fruits and nuts on the out side ( AS IF ANY OF THESE THING HAVE THE REMOTE POSSIBILITY OF BEING IN THE MENU OFFERS), that opens up to a chart the size of a large road map.

That chart, spells out in boring 8 point, hard to read, black and white font, that an simple Big Mac, shake and fries is 3,682 calories!!! 

Yes, you read that correctly, over 1,600 calories, in one meal, OVER the total daily consumption requirements as set by the FDA. 

So if you really want to improve you health, stay away from ANY restaurants, fast food or junk food, you do not prepare yourself.

Wonderful idea!!. Here is one step further.  Cook everything in one day. and freeze your meals in portion sized containers.  That way all you have to do is thaw your meal in  water and cook  it in your healthy cookware, no microwaves, less kitchen time during the busy week, and no waste.