Indeed, I was referring to polyculture.

Pesticides.

We came up with this brilliant idea of planting a single crop per field which creates the perfect environment for the things we call “pests”. We invented pesticides to kill the pests, which incidentally also kill their predators and competitors, making the environment even more favorable when the pest returns. So we started using more and stronger pesticides, creating a dependency cycle, with the added bonus of poisoning the ground, the water table, the oceans and ourselves.

Cheap and quick:

• Polenta

Cheap:

• Soups
• Salads
• Fried rice
• Bean chili
• Gnocchi
• Baked potatoes

Quick:

• Sandwiches
• Liver steak
• Wraps

Tips: Buy things butcheries throw away and make broth with them (scoop out fat when cold and use in place of butter or oil, use the broth to make soup). Make your own mayo. Buy vegetables you normally wouldn’t when they are cheap, and figure out a recipe for them, or pickle them in jars! Get away with throwing as little away as you can, make stock with scraps (make sure they are clean of any dirt). Walk and take note of any plants or trees yielding edible fruits, nuts and leaves, take note of when it’s best to harvest them, you never know what you have until you start looking. Get a small planter (or cut one out of a large plastic container) and try growing some plants from seeds you’d normally throw away, feed them kitchen scraps and leaves, it may take some time to get going, but it’s worth it for the nutrition and freebies.