The Cost of Food

One thing that has been great about living in Honduras has been the prices of food - mainly fresh produce. Granted its not always the best looking fruits and vegetables we have ever seen, they still serve their purpose! Usually the best harvest is exported Honduras is left with the rest. Living in the banana republic, we figured we would have access to an abundance of fresh bananas. Sadly though, the store usually only carries the beaten and bruised ones - something we´ve grown accustomed to! It is often less expensive to buy the fresh version over the canned option (which we prefer anyway - if it is available!) For example, a fresh pineapple here costs 30 Lempira (about $1.50) as opposed to the canned chunks for 50 Lemps ($2.50). The challenge is though, you never know what you are going to get when you go grocery shopping. Some trips I am pleasantly surprised by things like mushrooms or cream cheese, and other times I am disappointed when the store doesn´t have staples like yogurt or tomatoes! We´ve learned to deal with it though, and just substitute when looking for a certain unavailable ingredient. We nearly always shop at one of the supermarkets in town (there are 3). The prices are a little higher than those at the open market, but for convenience sake, we prefer the grocery store. (We pass by it everyday on our walk to and from school!) Also, visiting the market is just plain stressful! It is crowded with people and traffic, and definitely is not the safest place to be in town (especially if you are not a local). Sure, you can get 4 avocados for 20 Lempira there (about $1) as opposed to only 2 or 3 for the same place at the store, but still we like shopping at the grocery. Most items are pretty reasonably priced, it is only the imported products that are a little more expensive (but worth it!) We do our best to balance our purchases with a combination of cheap local items and a few more expensive American products. The variety has definitely improved since we first came to Honduras! Often times friends and family have sent us packages of some of our most beloved food items to give us a little taste of home when we are missing it!

So, I was looking at one of our grocery receipts and decided to jot down some prices. Honestly, I am not entirely sure how much the equivalent good would cost in the states these days, but am pretty sure we are getting a good deal here. The exchange rate is approximately 20 Lempira (well, 18.89 to be exact) to $1 U.S. dollar.

5 Lemps for a pound of tomatoes (25 cents)
6 Lemps for a green pepper (30 cents)
6 Lemps for a green pepper (30 cents)
6.50 Lemps per pound of eggplant (33 cents)
7.50 Lemps for a pound of potatoes (43 cents)
9 Lemps for a bunch of lettuce (45 cents)
9 Lemps per avocado (45 cents)
10 Lemps for a package of hamburger buns (5o cents)
12 Lemps for a melon (60 cents)
22 Lemps per pound of Fuji apples - about 2 ($1.10)
22 Lemps for a box of (very sour) blackberries ($1.10)
24 Lemps for a monster bag of spinach ($1.20)
28 Lemps for a pound of pasta ($1.40)

30 Lemps for a can of black beans ($1.50)
30 Lemps for a pound of strawberries ($1.55)
31 Lemps for a pound of carrots ($1.60)
37 Lemps for yogurt natural ($1.85)
37 Lemps for a loaf of bread ($1.85)
40 Lemps for a honey bear ($2.00)
48 Lemps for a pound of ground beef ($2.40)
52 Lemps for a 1/2 Liter of Soy Milk ($2.60)
55 Lemps for a package of turkey bacon ($2.75)
60 Lemps for deodorant ($3.00)
86 Lemps for Honey Bunches of Oats Cereal ($4.30)
92 Lemps for a 14oz package of smoked sausage ($4.60)
93 Lemps for 8oz of cheese ($4.65)

I am sure we will have some sticker shock when we return to grocery shopping in the states...especially for the fresh fruits and vegetables!