Groceries Are Killing Me

klafrancis

Two words: farmers. market.

I'm lucky enough to live down the street from a fantastic farmers market! $20 a week and all the fruits and veggies I could dream of!

starcatcher1975

I agree with others that say buying healthier is more expensive. It might also have to do with demographics, some areas groceries are way more expensive than others. I a friend of mine who lives in FL could not believe what groceries costs here in GA, I layed out a menu plan for that coming week and wrote it all down and out beside it put the costs of what it costs to buy it and she was floored. Buying produce and fresh is alot more expensive here than buying the canned or packaged stuff. The best that I can do is buy in bulk when its on sale...especially meats, etc that you can freeze. We are a family of 5 and ours costs around 900 a month and I do all my cooking from scratch!

I used to live in FL and was used to fruit/vegetable stands everywhere and the stuff was cheap. I moved to TN and there's nothing like that here. When I found out about the farmer's market in my town I started going, but honestly most the stuff is the same price/more expensive than it is in a regular grocery store. But If I can get it for the same price I'll buy it because they *say* it is organic. One thing I am still surprised about is the cost of cage-free chicken eggs...$5/dozen. Maybe I'm just a cheap tightwad but it kills me to buy them!

And I'm with the OP...I can't afford $14/lb for hamburger either. However, if I had space for a deep freezer I would do like some people I know and have a cow/pig slaughtered and portioned up. They say it hurts when they have to pay for it but in the end it comes out much cheaper, it's fresher and they get it from local farms here. That's something for me to look into when I have a bigger place though.

kristiru

I can completely relate! It does cost a lot of money to re-vamp your pantry with healthy staples, like quinoa, brown rice, coconut oil, nutritional yeast, etc. But once you've spent that initial outlay, you'll just be replenishing as you use things, so it does get better!

I also cook for one, and used to spend a lot of money on food to make different recipes, and then ended up throwing a lot out, because I couldn't eat it all before it spoiled. I don't know if you're following a type of meal plan that tells you what to eat for 7 days straight, but what I've found to work for me is to look at a 7 day meal plan, pick 3 days of meals and buy enough to cover those 3 days twice. So if blueberries are on day 1 of a 7 day plan but they don't show up again, now they show up again on day 4, because you're repeating day 1. And your blueberries are still fresh! Likewise, if turkey burgers are on day 2, they're on day 5 again, so you can prepare them both on day 1 and its ready to go on day 5. And you know exactly how many ounces of ground turkey to buy.
Sometimes, I buy and cook all of my meat portions for the week on Sunday, so I just have to reheat my portion later in the week. I also leave one day unplanned, for eating out, eating up leftovers, or whatever comes up.

It can get boring to repeat the same menu twice in a week, but you can change it up the next week, based on what you have in your pantry and freezer. If you look at what you have at home, and plan what you can make with it, before you go shopping for food, you can save a lot of money and not waste much.

AshinAms

Make your own yoghurt, you can buy a yoghurt maker that contains a litre tub - you use UHT milk, a bit of milk powder and some bought yoghurt to start you off and it works out considerably cheaper. Look up 'making yoghurt at home' on google. You don't even need the maker, you can do it in your oven if it has a very low heat setting or alternatively in a vacuum flask.

WhitneyAnnabelle

Food prices will continue to rise...rapidly. Thanks, China.

But yeah, $600 for one person is outrageous. I spend about $300 for two people, and I buy mostly all organic produce. Granted, I'm not buying meat, dairy, or eggs, so that takes a lot of the cost out, too. I would also suggest buying in bulk and freezing. You can freeze just about anything. Be careful about the farmer's markets, though-- I hear a lot of people say you can find stuff cheaper, but here (in Maine), farmer's market prices can be ridiculous. As much as I want to get my stuff at them, I just can't afford it.

ladyepanda

If yogurt is a concern, it is very simple to make your own. I've been making my own for awhile now, and it does save some money...but it takes a little effort. The first step is being aware!

Luckldy31

I buy my produce from a co-op... bountifulbaskets.org It's $15 dollars a week (add 10 for certified organic) for 1 basket of veggies, and 1 basket of fruit... I get WAY more for the price than I would from the grocery store...They also have weekly extras you can purchase. I just bought 8lbs of strawberries for 11 dollars... it's usually 3.99/lb... Not sure where you are, but I definitely recommend looking into it...

TGKvr

You may want to also check into any CSAs available in your area. (Community Supported Agriculture) It's usually a great deal and sometimes you can pick your packages: combinations of produce, meat, etc. Sometimes even herbs, eggs, and wool. Some CSAs even have delivery options!

I feel your pain though... eating good quality foods isn't cheap, no matter what anyone says. But I tend to spend more on food and justify it by denying myself other things instead.

Elizabeth_C34

We spend about $500 per month for two of us, and we eat quite well.

We get a lot of dry beans (especially black beans) and cook them in the crock pot. We usually do whiting, tuna, or tilapia for fish (good source of lean protein), and we buy chicken and red meats on sale and freeze them. For veggies, we usually do farmer's market then either can or freeze them.

We do a lot in greek yogurt too, but I usually stock up when it's on sale then just eat on it throughout the week for snacks and breakfast.

parkermegan

We spent 1K on groceries last month! Now, that is for myself, my husband, and our two kids that are eating But, that is nuts! Most of it goes to the turkey deli meat we like ($7 a lb and we eat a lot of it) and fruit and vegetables! Eating healthy is expensive. We have NO OPTIONS here for food....Walmart is IT for 1.5 hours.....I can't wait to move and have options to stores with sales etc.

imchicbad

GOOD GREIF!
Yogurt in that amount- not all that clean (you eat that much yougurt)-serously?- and processed food is crazy bad and expensive.

99 cent store has great veggies and snacks. Check it out, eating all the same stuff all the time, every day gets boring and old quick- don't limit your self, I think you went overboard, like BIGTIME. I buy for 3 people- for a week or two at a time. about 150 bucks. Somethings not right, I can tell you that. You just gave me a really good ideal.

Phrak

know that feeling, im probably close to 900$ a month for myself. Id say 75% of that or more is in chicken.

Onesnap

Food prices will continue to rise...rapidly. Thanks, China.

Actually, it's not China.

It's the fact that only 1% of US residents are actually farmers. The rest are factory farms. In fact, the job 'farmer' is not even listed on the US Census any longer. The government does not subsidize any fruit or veggie crops (they do however subsidize mono crops like corn and soy (used in processed food, and to feed animals grains they cannot digest (cows can't digest grain, hence the antibiotics).

China does not have ANYTHING to do with the sad, sad state of US farming or lack thereof.

Did you know that currently there's not enough fruit and veggie growers in the US to currently feed the residents so that they *meet* the USDA food pyramid?

Iluvchopsticks

Yikes, I have no idea how you rack up that much in expenses. My grocery bill is around 400/month for two people and we eat clean. Most of our meats are free range/grass fed, dairy comes from grass fed sources and most of our fruit is organic. I also used to live in Hawaii and ate fairly clean and didn't spend nearly what you do. Are there any farmers markets near you? How about a CSA? Some CSA's in my area include meat as well and are pretty cheap in comparison to grocery stores.

starzluv94

Are you buying all brand names? Buy generic. You can save so much money going with generic.

happy2mamma

do you have a farmers market near by? I used to buy produce at Costco and BJs and I was spending hundreds, now I can buy fresh fruit and vegetables for 2 weeks and be well under $100 and I have a family of 4 who love to eat produce!

NoAdditives

Do you have a Trader Joe's? I spend about $600 for a family of 5, with 95% of my food coming from TJ's. It's inexpensive and nearly everything is organic. We buy very little processed/prepackaged food and the majority of it is fresh produce.

EmilyTwist1

My tips:

Grow as much of your own as you can. If at all possible, get heirloom seeds, and save some of the seeds each season, and you'll be set for life.

Buy generics whenever possible. And check out the store brands, as some stores have multiple brands. For example, HEB has three different store brands: Hill Country Fair, HEB, and Central Market (this one is organic). While the Central Market brand is a little more expensive, since it's organic, it is still less expensive than brand names (for example, Central Market organic milk is about $3 less than Horizon).

Buy locally produced food as much as possible. 90-95% of the cost of food is in transportation. Which makes sense, since the average meal travels 1500 miles before it gets eaten. Local food, even if it's just with in your own state, is generally less expensive.

Buy seasonally. When it comes to fresh produce, buy what is in season, as it will be much cheaper. Where I live, there's about a $2 difference in the cost of strawberries between winter and summer. Also, produce that is in season will be more nutritious, as it has not been frozen or picked early and allowed to ripen in storage.

emuhawk

I honestly can't believe that. Eating healthier caused me to SAVE money on groceries. WHAT are you buying? are you making smart decisions? Usually fresh and natural foods are cheaper than the processed junk ones.

I have heard people say this before, and it really frustrates me. I'm not trying to be rude, I just don't understand how it happens. It is *so much* cheaper for me to buy unhealthy, processed foods than for me to buy fresh produce. My grocery bill has almost doubled as a result of my new eating habits - and I'm eating far less food overall! I look for coupons and special deals; I try to buy in bulk where possible; but there is no getting around the math. Healthy fresh food just costs more, at least where I live. If there's a secret I'm missing, I would love someone to clue me in!

pants77

I won't name-drop here, but there are credit cards that give 6% cash back at grocery stores. That'd save you 6% right there. Works for me.

Google it if you want more info.