Yup, one thing I refuse to sell out on, is old meat.  It curls my toenails to open a package of meat that is SUPPOSED to be fresh and feel a slimey film on it.  It irritates me that stores and meat markets are still allowed (or get away with) pushing old product on unsuspecting customers, such as wrapping brown ground beef in a layer of red so it looks new.

Food poisoning is not a pleasant illness to get.  Once you do, you'll put that pack of ground round back in the "cheap eats" bin and forget about it.

Beefeater- If it makes your pets sick, it will make you sick. They don't have much hardier stomachs to the dangerous bacteria that are common in meat these days.  (Cats may be the one exception, but not to Ecoli. Though they can still get parasites from raw meat, it's just they're carnivores, rather as humans are either omnivores or herbivores naturally. Thus, they are able to eat raw meat and tolerate small levels of bacteria. Since you said it was a dog though, they have a similar tolerance as humans do.) Burger king quality meat isn't quite the same quality as a vegetarian fed high quality beef, since Burger King isn't terribly strict on quality controls. (Not that any meat places is though.) I'd suggest finding a local real butcher and find people who raise the cattle, and see the conditions they're being raised under. If you like those conditions, chances are the meat is safe to eat even raw, if it's muscle. If it doesn't seem like a place you'd want to spend more than an hour in, the meat may not be super safe. If the place outright scares you, chances are you shouldn't get meat from there. The meat will also be more flavorful if grassfed.

In general to the original post, it's a good idea in my opinion to buy "aged meat" if you're planning on cooking it and it's VERY high quality meat to begin with. I also would suggest organ meat to those people who insist upon eating meat. Hot dogs and hamburgers aren't made up of quality meat, and nor is your ground beef. You can get it ground at a decent butcher and made into burgers from the cheaper cuts, and it will taste much better than regular store bought burgers. I would only suggest buying organic meat though, due to the dangers. (Personally, I don't eat meat due to health problems and environmental concerns. The regular slaughtering isn't humane either. If they were slaughtered in a humane way, and we were eating meat in a responsible way(Ie, monthly for 1 meal as opposed to daily.), and I didn't have health problems, I would probably eat meat upon occasion.)

Hormones in cows are no joke, and old dairy cows are where we get our burgers from. Old meaning 1 year old, which is a fairly young age for a non hormonally modified cow... The hormones are still in their systems! Also, it's more important health wise to use meat as a garnish or an occasional meal, so the cost shouldn't really be an issue. That's like debating the cost of chocolate. A little bit of meat will give flavor to TVP and other vegetarian(and cheaper) sources of protein that are healthier overall in our modern era. Beans, rice, with a little bit of meat and spices for seasoning will be a healthy tasty dinner.  I don't really trust the meat at Whole Food's even, I don't know the slaughtering conditions and if it is safe to eat. I don't buy dairy from regular farms since 5% of milk containers have pus in them and quite frankly, the conditions are appalling. Support your local farmers. You have to pay a higher price per gallon and pound for animal products, but honestly, it tastes better and animal products are a treat, not an everyday product. A pound of meat has about 4-5 servings in it, and so $15 a pound isn't overpriced in my mind, as it is still less than a dollar per serving, and a pound of meat should be enough for the average family per week.

In terms of calcium for the kids, I suggest leafy green veggies, *** feeding for 2-3 years minimum(up to 5-7 depending on your local culture and if your child wants to be weaned. Use a *** pump and serve it in a glass once the child is able to drink from a non sippy cup. Exclusively *** feed for 6 months, and depending on the child's growth, for up to a year.), citrus with the veggies, and minimal processed food, along with oily fish(Or a supplement.) for the Vit D to help bones grow strong. Children do like veggies if they're raised to like them. My cousins, myself, my nephew are all examples of children who ate their veggies in various ways. Children don't need special "kids food" and I would advise never giving chicken nuggets to children, or any sort of junk meat or food in general. The dyes have been linked to ADHD in children, and the preservatives are quite questionable. The flavors will cause them to think regular food is bland, and the sweeteners cause them to think sugary food isn't good. The only exception to "childrens" food, is that I understand children under age 2 are not supposed to have honey, and children under a year may not be able to tolerate very spicy food, though they can tolerate some spice. Also, a young child needs smaller portions and needs high fat items for brain development. But in general, the same recipes, if made from natural foods, will work just fine for a child as an adult.  An all natural diet really isn't too much work,or cost even if you buy in bulk and make it from scratch(this means homemade pasta.).

Canned and frozen veggies are perfect for cooked dishes, and if you have even a porch you can grow some veggies and fruits. Mint is remarkably easy to grow, as are lettuce and tomatoes.  In the case of meat, not everyone has the acreage to grow a cow, but a lot of suburbanites if they would give up their lawns could pool 2 lawns for a goat, with some supplemental hay. A goats meat is flavorful and low in fat. Also, venison is a cheap "organic by default" meat that is easy to come by if you know hunters or live in an area with a lot of deer. Squirrels are easy to cook as well, and perfectly fine for seasoning dishes. Pigeons are debatable fine, depending on where you live. If raised by hand and you know what they are eating, they are great, but otherwise I'd avoid them since they do eat anything.

Fishing is not something I would recommend doing in our lakes and rivers due to pollution(At least in the suburbs of Boston, where I live), but you can get very good fish at a fish market, if you buy directly from the fishermen. If you have a local butcher, they will be also to prepare the fish for you, or you can learn how to debone a fish, which takes just a few minutes and can be done by a mature child(age 7 or so on). Many people can also keep a chicken coop with neighbors for fresh eggs that are healthy and great tasting, if they live in the suburbs.   None of this takes much time, and is much better for you in the long run. It may not have the appeal of a cheaply made "burger" that is mostly filler, but it really is very quick and easy to do. I personally feel that for a good meal, it should take 2-3 hours to cook with decorating and other things taking up most of that time. But for an everyday meal, 30minutes is perfectly sufficient and I'd think quicker than fast food even!

If you can't cook for 30 minutes in a day, I suggest if you have children, for them to do it. If they are over age 5 or so, they can handle a simple recipe(Pasta from scratch(eggs, flour, and knead it. Then toss it into a plate of boiling water. Or even something like bread.), though be careful with large pots and pans for them, and hot ovens. Keep an eye on them but a parent can easily do paperwork or work at home while the child is cooking a recipe. I would suggest watching them while they are doing it for the first time though, and if you hear them cry out for you, come quickly because a burn does need to be treated, or a pan may be too heavy for them.  If you don't have children, or your children are too young,  prepare the food at the start of the week and microwave it. It won't taste as amazing, but it will taste decent.

I'm not some sort of 1950s throwback that thinks women should stay home and cook all day, but the number of things we do in the name of speed are silly. Getting shirts treated with chemicals so we don't have to iron, swiffers to avoid mopping(Though their dusters are nice!),  fast food, meat that is cut in a meat packing place as opposed to a local butcher(the animal should be shipped whole to your grocer, though sans skin.), predried pasta, grocery store pies and cakes, precut salads, getting clothing that is cheaply made so we can afford to throw it out when we have a small tear in it, prestarted seedlings for home gardens, non reusable container bottled water(for airplanes, I'll make an exception due to security),instant coffee, even cars instead of bikes for most trips under 10 miles... I feel that for a responsible adult couple, it's quite easy for the two of them to do so, and anyone with children has an extra set of hands. Sure, when people get home from work/school, they want to relax, and many children do have tons of homework, and many adults have to work at home. Still, a person can spare an hour a day to cook, and the weekends are free for most people. Tending to animals might take an extra 20 minutes of your time if you have the land, and the gardens need the weekends. Grocery shopping is maybe a 2 hour trip per week, and really, we have a lot of time to just waste that we still manage to "waste" doing housework. Why not do it a harmless, better for the community way?  I'm an avid supporter of technology, but for some things, it simply isn't needed. Medicine, physics, the space program, road science, and things like that it's  needed for. Even science for the sake of science is great, and saving time in life or death situations is important. Saving time with home tasks doesn't really save much time at all.  Computers are amazing things. We don't need a device to help us prepare a meal by prepackaging it. A cookbook is needed, but we have the internet now, which is a giant cookbook that I shall call google. I'm not saying to not use a stove and build a fire, but for most basic chores, we're fine with methods used in the 1800s-1900s. An oven is one exception, for home use, and a stovetop is certainly new. But 50 years old isn't new by our standards I guess.

It's ridiculous for people in this economy to be worried about the unnaturally low price of meat rising, and buying old cheap quality meat. Buying "old" high quality meat is perfectly fine, but really if we stopped slaughtering cows at 400 per hour and started raising our own and slaughtering as needed, and only raising as needed, it would be a good idea. The idea of fast food being acceptable is silly. It's not, it's not healthy, and to for many responses to note they got ill from old meat at a fast food chain is quite different than carefully slaughtered, humanely raised, grass fed beef. Also, eating raw meat is a bad idea in general. That includes sushi and "rare" meat.

With bread, most of it is so full of junky preservatives, I wouldn't dare buy "day"(more like several months) old bread these days, since I'm not sure if the chemicals would degrade. If we're talking about nice quality artisan bread, it should be fine. I'm the great granddaughter of a baker and pastry chef, and day old just means it might not be as fluffy, but is perfectly fine, if it's made from scratch. Real bread is perfectly fresh for eating plain for 2 weeks, if refrigerated, and in a non humid area(otherwise,1 week), then you can use it for making croutons unless it has mold. If it has mold, you can cut it away, or add it to your compost pile. The phrase day old dates from the days when every town had an actual bakery, so the day old bread was bread that was cooked the day before, not before it's expiration date. Now if people would just stop expecting to be able to get the same type of bread each day, and accept a bakery might only make one type per day, unless you make your own bread, day old items wouldn't bother me, same deal with those dented cans. B-tox is a serious illness,  but it is easy to detect by the bulges in cans, and if something is just canned in water and salt, the bacteria other than B-Tox that grow in those cans are somewhat rare if the canning is done properly.

Meh

Also, reading these comments, for everyone who claims it's unhealthy to be a vegetarian, there are actually many benefits to being a vegetarian. Vitamin b12 is only a concern for vegans and is easily supplemented. It is very easy to get enough calories and protein. A woman needs 40 grams a day, a man 50(on average). If you're just eating salads, it is tricky. Quinoa, tofu, (any soy really) and many combination of food make complete proteins for vegans. Meat may be tasty, but that doesn't mean it's super healthy for us, esp with how most meat is raised. It's debatable how healthy humanely raised animals are, but it is clear that how we currently raise meat subjects the animals to stress and causes higher levels of cholesterol in the meat, which affects humans. It's also really bad for the environment how we raise cattle in feedlots.  People are not meant to eat meat daily, we are not carnivores(Look at our teeth. We do have 4 canines, and dogs are omnivores, and we mostly have rabbit or horse teeth. We have a long intestinal track. We're clearly not meant to eat much meat. Our eyes are those of carnivores, so it is debatable if we're meant to eat some meat.) . Conventionally raised meat is high in saturated fats and calories, thus not ideal for our modern world. Meat was traditionally used as a seasoning in most cultures,and as a treat. It is very healthy to limit meat consumption to a rarity. I can't digest meat and I become very sick if I have meat products(including fish). Not sure what it is, but muscle doesn't settle well for my body. Bone and innards seem to be fine, but I don't eat those due to the ethical concerns and dangerously genetically high cholesterol from age 2 on. Haggis is quite yummy though. You don't need meat daily, it's debatable if occasional eating of it is a good idea, but it's certainly not harmful to never eat it, and processed meats have been linked to cancer. Unless you are buying grass fed beef from a local farmer whose conditions you honestly feel fine spending a day with the cattle(or whatever animals are being raised or hunted.), and you are eating non muscle meat often, it is silly to eat meat. Most meat eaters freak out upon seeing animals being shot, or people eating roadkill. Many meat eaters oppose kill shelters or the eating of dogs or horses. Horses are tasty. Cows are sweeter animals. Veal is from baby cattle, and well, they're very cute and sweet. Veal is fed a gruel that is unhealthy in an attempt to make the flesh more tender. If people would just get used to the fact meat tastes like meat, I bet people would eat it less often. Instead,we make our meat taste like nothing, and be bland and sweet. It's not supposed to taste like that. Mutton, horse and goat are great for a taste of the wild without having as harsh a flavor as bear or dolphin.

Sams club often has great "used meat specials" funny case i always refered to them as GreenMeat specials-LOL , as for sell by i always say "we aint selling, just eating"