Yeah, we can't really reduce animal proteins further, for health and energy reasons. Even dairy and eggs will set you back, quite a bit, if you buy the good stuff. I could just buy cheaper cuts. I only buy steak once per month, for instance, and I usually have ground meat. This was my most-expensive monthly pantry stack. 😁
Everytime I've tried to save money by lowering the quality and/or nutrition-density, we all got constant attacks of the munchies. Even cheap meat leaves us all feeling hungry. I'd rather eat a good spelt sourdough, with lots of fresh butter on top, so that I don't feel like I'm starving while I eat.