Food has become more expensive in recent years. This is no surprise to anyone: a trip to the supermarket is all it takes to realize this. Products that used to be part of our daily lives seem to have receded into the background, almost unnoticed on the shelves, while consumers adapt their habits, sometimes reluctantly.

Newspapers such as Le Monde and Les Echos often remind us that rising prices are not just a line in an economic report. It changes the way we eat, the way we choose, the way we sometimes give up.

While some are adjusting their menus, others are completely revamping the way they fill their baskets. Some dishes disappear, others are transformed. Many are turning to cheaper products, sometimes to the detriment of taste or quality. Of course, this trend does not affect everyone in the same way, and reinforces a feeling of injustice, particularly for those for whom every trip to the checkout becomes a meticulous calculation.

A food system that tires… and raises questions

Of course, price rises don’t happen by magic. International crises, climate, energy, negotiations between manufacturers and distributors all play a role.

But there’s something else too. A feeling that the system has become difficult to understand, that it sometimes benefits those who control it more than those who are subjected to it. Press surveys regularly show that consumers often find themselves at the end of the chain, with no real visibility and no real possibility of influencing what goes on.

Without falling into pessimism, we have to admit that this situation prompts us to ask ourselves questions. What do we want on our plates? How can we maintain access to quality food without it becoming a luxury reserved for the few?

Reclaiming some land: producing your own produce

Against this backdrop, one trend is slowly gaining ground: that of producing a small part of one’s own food. Nothing revolutionary, no need for a hectare and rubber boots. All it takes is a few pots on a balcony, a small garden plot, a corner shared with neighbors or even a greenhouse.

Growing your own food certainly cuts your food budget slightly, but above all it gives you food of incomparable freshness, reconnects you with seasonality and gives meaning back to what you eat. Planting, watering, watching things grow, harvesting: it changes our relationship with food.

A gentle emergency: taking care of our diet

What the press reports on inflation reveal is not just a question of price. It’s also a collective awareness that our food deserves more attention.

Producing your own food, even a little, is a simple and accessible way to take back control.
It’s also a way of reconnecting with what really matters: healthy, local, quality food that’s good for both body and soul. And it’s fair to say that we’re increasingly losing sight of this in the supermarket stalls.

Times change, and so do prices. But our habits can change for the better. Replanting, relearning, sharing, cooking differently: these are small actions that can transform many things.

How about starting again with something simple?

A pot of basil on the windowsill.
A few cherry tomatoes on a balcony.
A tower of lettuces in a greenhouse.

Food autonomy often begins with a modest gesture. And this gesture can change our relationship with our food, our budget and even our daily lives.