Cost of food rant

Options
124

Replies

  • debsdoingthis
    debsdoingthis Posts: 454 Member
    Options
    bump for the link
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    Options
    I don't know if these tips have been mentioned but here are some I use:

    1- Shop at Costco. It's bulk but the prices are usually unbeatable.

    2- Let good food become a way you treat yourself and your family. Even the best groceries are cheaper than the cheapest restaurant, I think. Kids would probably rather have a nice cooked breakfast over Kashi cereal, anyway. Mine would!
  • liftingandlipstick
    liftingandlipstick Posts: 1,857 Member
    Options
    In, mostly because I definitely need all of these tips, and I want to save the thread!

    I do have one tip to add though, and that's to eliminate variety in whatever areas you can. I'm only feeding myself, so it may be easier for me than those with families, but I eat the same things for breakfast/morning snack/lunch every day.
    Breakfast is two fried (no oil/butter) eggs on a tortilla with 1/4 of an avocado and a sprinkle of kosher salt. 315 cals and about .65c
    Lunch is a sandwich with mustard, a slice of cheese or half of a Laughing Cow wedge, and half a package of Buddig lunch meat plus a pot of Greek yogurt. 320-400 cals, $1.70. It's a lot cheaper without the yogurt, so sometimes I eat a whole package of lunch meat on the sandwich instead.
    Morning snack: granola bar, .33c, 150 cal

    Dinner is really the only place I vary, and I make up big pots of soups, stews, rice & beans, whatever I can get cheap, or have staples onhand.

    ETA: I do this because not having other options makes it easier for me to shop. If I stop and think, maybe I'll want bagels and maybe cereal and maybe oatmeal and maybe bacon, it costs way more to have all that on hand. When I know exactly what I'm going to have, I need to buy far fewer ingredients.
  • Maerwhyn
    Maerwhyn Posts: 22 Member
    Options
    So here's a follow-up question. Do I just have an unrealistic expectation of what my budget should be? I have a family of 5 (baby's still nursing though, so I'm feeding 4) and I'm budgeting about $100 per week for food. I always feel like I'm running out of money at the end of the month. I usually shop at Costco and Winco.
  • Lizzy622
    Lizzy622 Posts: 3,705 Member
    Options
    $100 should be enough for food. What i found was that things like detergent, cleaning supplies and personal care items were eating up my food budget. Try budgeting for these things separately. Plan your meals based on sales and in season produce. Mixing beans or mushrooms into ground meat lets you use less meat and stretch your dollar.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    Options
    So here's a follow-up question. Do I just have an unrealistic expectation of what my budget should be? I have a family of 5 (baby's still nursing though, so I'm feeding 4) and I'm budgeting about $100 per week for food. I always feel like I'm running out of money at the end of the month. I usually shop at Costco and Winco.
    http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/05/01/grocery-costs-for-family/2104165/
  • Maerwhyn
    Maerwhyn Posts: 22 Member
    Options
    So according to that article, my problem isn't really the cost of food, it's that I have unrealistic expectations. I'm already doing everything that article says you need to do in order to eat cheaply, it's just not realistic to expect to feed all of us on $100 a week. Bleh. I guess I need to reevaluate my budget. Though it is kind of a relief. It'll be nice to feel justified in spending a bit more on food and not be so stressed out trying to stay under budget.
  • Titanuim
    Titanuim Posts: 337 Member
    Options
    Bookmarking. That pdf dowload is pretty awesome.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,951 Member
    Options
    Healthful food or cheap food?

    Lol.

    For example:

    I just brought home 240 pounds of pig and lamb. Pasture raised, cared for by young 4H kids. Purchased at auction. It's most of the meat need I have for the next year. The cost was $4.51 a pound averaged out between the pig and the lamb.

    We're talking raised locally, no unneeded antibiotics, a full natural life without feed lots, lean quality meat, strong taste of terroir. Hard to get this quality of meat at the butcher shop, let alone a super market.

    Just bought and canned 12 quarts of winter squash (pickled), ended up taking home 40# of squash and a mess of zucchini from a local farm. Less than $20.

    This whole healthful or economically efficient argument is BS.
  • k8blujay2
    k8blujay2 Posts: 4,941 Member
    Options
    What? A box of cereal is approximately $4... how much cereal do you buy for it to be half your budget... and there is more options to breakfast than cold cereal... you know like oatmeal, cream of wheat, eggs, bacon, a ham sandwich...
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,951 Member
    Options
    So here's a follow-up question. Do I just have an unrealistic expectation of what my budget should be? I have a family of 5 (baby's still nursing though, so I'm feeding 4) and I'm budgeting about $100 per week for food. I always feel like I'm running out of money at the end of the month. I usually shop at Costco and Winco.

    You're already buying at Winco? Dude... the vegetable prices there are amazing.

    The expectation isn't unreasonable at all. My wife on I when we shop at Winco spend about $30 a week on food on average. Just buy less boxed stuff, and you should be fine. It takes a lot of meat and vegetables at winco to reach $100.
  • maggiebee04
    maggiebee04 Posts: 9
    Options
    Dbmata: That's an excellent strategy *if you have a freezer.*

    I live in a tiny apartment with a mini fridge and one of those freezers that's 2 inches tall and is only really useful for ice cubes. So the whole buying-in-bulk and freezing thing doesn't work for me (and, I assume, lots of other people). Because of this I usually only eat meat 1 or 2 times a week, and the rest of the week eat things that need less refrigeration, like eggs or tofu, as the protein.
  • k8blujay2
    k8blujay2 Posts: 4,941 Member
    Options
    And for the record, my budget is $400 a month... I buy a ton of fruits, vegetables, yogurt, cheese, lean meats, even the expensive Special K cereals...
  • FitForL1fe
    FitForL1fe Posts: 1,872 Member
    Options
    Step 1: Buy tons of chicken
    Step 2: ?????
    Step 3: Profit!
  • Maryam2014mfp
    Maryam2014mfp Posts: 174
    Options
    Bump
  • KTRXS
    KTRXS Posts: 32 Member
    Options
    www[dot]budgetbytes[dot]com is really helpful!
  • kclynn7
    kclynn7 Posts: 71
    Options
    Cook eggs the night before. You can make an omelet or make a big batch of scrambled eggs. I keep scrambled eggs in the fridge for up to two days. If you microwave them in a small dish it will slide out perfectly to fit on a bagel thin or toast. You could make a little breakfast sandwich (open face for fewer calories) and it will be healthier and keep you full longer than junk cereal. Eggs microwave for 1 minute, the same time it would take to pour a bowl of cereal and milk.
  • CaitlinW19
    CaitlinW19 Posts: 431 Member
    Options
    Check out the blog budgetbytes.com. She always does delicious meals that are budget friendly but this month she is doing a "SNAP challenge", which I was unfamilliar with but apparently challeges a person to eat below the poverty line for a month. It's pretty interesting. I take some of her recipes and modify to make them a little lighter (reduced fat cheese, etc.) though lots of times the recipes are reasonable as is.

    I've had a lot of success cutting my grocery budget the last few months by at least 25%. I look for recipes on budgetbytes and skinnytaste.com (meals under $10 section) which helps...I think the biggest thing for me though has been making more use of my Sam's Club membership. I now buy all my meat there, divide it for multiple use and freeze. I bet this saves me at least 50% on my meat costs which are, for most of us, the biggest part of the expense. I've found other things there too that I save big on too...frozen veggies, fresh lettuce and a few other things. I also have made a point to make more vegetarian meals. I aim for about 1/3 of our meals to be vegetarian. I'm still looking to cut more from my food expenses so I'm always looking for a new way to trim it up but I am thrilled with an extra cash to go in savings.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,951 Member
    Options
    Dbmata: That's an excellent strategy *if you have a freezer.*

    I live in a tiny apartment with a mini fridge and one of those freezers that's 2 inches tall and is only really useful for ice cubes. So the whole buying-in-bulk and freezing thing doesn't work for me (and, I assume, lots of other people). Because of this I usually only eat meat 1 or 2 times a week, and the rest of the week eat things that need less refrigeration, like eggs or tofu, as the protein.

    You have a closet. you have room in the living area.

    If you want it to happen, you'll make it happen. My first place was essentially a 200 square foot room. I had my development setup, a chest freezer, and a place for all my cooking equipment.

    "I don't have space" is really code for, "Cool story bro, but too hard."
  • Jennloella
    Jennloella Posts: 2,287 Member
    Options
    we spend a lot on food. Our grocery bill is around 900 a month. But since we cut out crap cereal, soda, boxed stuff (did this about two years ago) and replaced it with oatmeal, smoothies, fresh fruits and veggies I did not notice a significant increase in our grocery bill. Things that are out of season cost more, so learn to roll with those changes, plan stuff out in advance and try to only go to the store a couple times a month, running to the store constantly will cost you more in the end. I love costco for dry stuff like pasta, oatmeal, etc.

Categories