2 Nephi 8

I've had this dilemma lately: buy "better" food (organic, local, etc) or buy cheaper food? After much research, (which, if you know me, you know that I research a lot before making a decision), I've concluded a few things.
#1. Better is not always more expensive if you know where to look. The farm co-op we are a part of is supplying us with wonderful, organic produce for a fraction of the cost at the stores (in fact, it's less than traditional(?) vegetables there, too). The farmer's market is another example of better being cheaper. Grains, though not grown locally, are cheaper when bought in their whole form & processed at home. Upicks provide fruit I can pick & can myself for less than store cost and 100-fold in taste.

#2. About the other foods I buy; convenience items, milk, cheeses, meats. These are more expensive if purchased from a local source. So, I wonder, should I buy them & support ALL local foods? Or, is there something I'm missing? Local, small farms are usually "cruelty free" (yeah, like chopping a chicken's head off at any time in their life is free of cruelty as long as they lived a good life...hmmm?) and they use organic resources.

However (since I'm not for pushing complete veganism) I wonder if this cost is worth it. Yes, it tastes better, there is higher nutrition, but today's scripture study had me wondering something else: What about those who have NO nutrition? I'm not talking about the kids at the soup kitchen on the corner, they're getting help, but those who are literally starving to death? Is the better "taste" of my food so important, when they are getting none? Is a miniscule increase in minerals & vitamins in my food worth it, when they are getting NONE?

What if I pocketed those extra dollars each year, and then sent them to a better cause? I calculated today that by saving $3/gallon on milk alone, (by not buying organic) given we drink 2 gallons a week, I could be sending $312/year worth of food to a starving child somewhere. I read that in those countries, kids are living on less than a dollar a day (if they are living at all), so just by giving up my extra milk money, I can feed another person for a whole YEAR. And feed them well. The scripture that got me on this was
11 Therefore, the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy and holiness shall be upon their heads; and they shall obtain gladness and joy; sorrow and mourning shall flee away.
12 I am he; yea, I am he that comforteth you. Behold, who art thou, that thou shouldst be afraid of man, who shall die, and of the son of man, who shall be made like unto grass?
13 And forgettest the Lord thy maker, that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth, and hast feared continually every day, because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? And where is the fury of the oppressor?
14 The captive exile hasteneth, that he may be loosed, and that he should not die in the pit, nor that his bread should fail.

(Book of Mormon | 2 Nephi 8:11 - 14)

At first, I was rejoicing that the suffering would not suffer...but then, it came--will he really lift up all the suffering, or is it up to us? Just a thought.