How much do you spend on groceries? (sale, best, old)

[jlawrence01]

I think that SARAHSEZ has some of the best ideas on frugal grocery shopping. I would do a few other things.

I find with MOST people, 80% of their grocery spend is on about 20% of the SKUs (items) that they purchase over the course of the year. For example, in my house, I will buy 300 portions of yogurt, 40 half gallons of orange juice, 60# of romaine lettuce, 30$ of ground beef among other things over the course of a year. On the other hand, I might buy one bottle of malt vinegar and three artichokes. The price book that I keep is basically limited to those 40 items that we consume often.

On the the high use items, I buy a lot of it when it is on sale. For example, I drive past a Japanese market 4x per year. They carry some of the finest ground beef, portioned in 1# "family size" packages for $1.59-1.89/ lb. I will often buy 15# on a visit. The Korean market I get to 2x a year and take advantage of their ridiculous prices on shrimp, frozen seafood, and of all things, short ribs that are half the price of the grocery chains.

The local panaderia has low prices on rolls, the local supermarket. on regular breads and Walmart has some very inexpensive artisan breads that are as good as some of the specialty markets.

The local Safeway affiliate always has deals on dairy as they have no customers and have to move the product. I take advantage of every deal when retailers want to move things. Not too long ago, I bought 24 1# cans of Alaskan salmon for $0.25 a can at Walgreen's.

Surplus groceries, usually near Amish/Mennonite areas offer some phenomenal deals, often not out of date. There are some chains like United Grocery Outlet (TN, NC) that offer some really good deals.

I do not bake at this time as I just have not taken the time to teach myself and to invest in good equipment. That will be a Spring 2014 project.

[smartygurl]

Great meal plans flyingsaucermom and Sarahsez..

[LS1212]

I'm stunned people only spend a couple hundred a month. I would like to cut food costs but I thought 250 a week for 5 was frugal!

I rarely buy boxed or processed food, I make most of our food. I buy a lot of produce. We eat pretty healthy. I would be happy to cut the costs to 500 month but thought that was unrealistic.

I would be curious to see what people are eating for 200 a month for a family? Boxed Mac and Cheese for dinner???

[arrieros81]

Originally Posted by LS1212

I'm stunned people only spend a couple hundred a month. I would like to cut food costs but I thought 250 a week for 5 was frugal!

I rarely buy boxed or processed food, I make most of our food. I buy a lot of produce. We eat pretty healthy. I would be happy to cut the costs to 500 month but thought that was unrealistic.

I would be curious to see what people are eating for 200 a month for a family? Boxed Mac and Cheese for dinner???

I think the most frugal people here spend consciously, and make staples (grains, cereals, legumes, pasta) the bulk of their diet, with some produce and dairy mixed in here and there. Eating simply.

Processed foods like boxed mac and cheese could be part of it, but a healthier, homemade non-processed substitute might not cost too much more.

I'm going to try to spend more consciously too, and make cheaper substitutions without sacrificing food quality and nutrition.

[pnc66]

Originally Posted by Jayerdu

We are a family of 5. Two adults and a 6, 4, and 1.5 year olds. We spend about $125 on groceries and about $50 on household stuff (1.5 month old still wears diapers). We do shop at Central Market (whole foods like store) and only get organic produce, meats, and dairy.

Before we went organic, our bill was actually higher. I think we just ate healthier naturally by forgoing junk food when we switched.

Also, we preplan our dinner menu for the entire week so we never buy anything that is not on the list. I think this is key as well. For breakfast we eat eggs and bacon and for lunch we eat deli sandwiches generally.

Is this per month or per week? If per month, then maybe treking down to Central Market (not exactly convenient from my side of town) would be worth it. Otherwise, if that's per week, between HEB and Sprouts, we're spending about the same (and I'm still trying to get it down).

[pnc66]

Originally Posted by LS1212

I'm stunned people only spend a couple hundred a month. I would like to cut food costs but I thought 250 a week for 5 was frugal!

I rarely buy boxed or processed food, I make most of our food. I buy a lot of produce. We eat pretty healthy. I would be happy to cut the costs to 500 month but thought that was unrealistic.

I would be curious to see what people are eating for 200 a month for a family? Boxed Mac and Cheese for dinner???

I think part of the equation are the regional price differences in what everyone pays for groceries too. I was really surprised when I visited my mom in California a few years ago and saw how cheap her groceries were compared to ours. Same thing when we went to visit my husband's aunt and uncle in NW Florida. They warned us to stay out of Publix because it was "so expensive" yet their prices were lower overall than ours.

Staples like sugar, flour, butter, and milk were much cheaper in Kentucky than they were here in Houston when I first moved here. Avocados were also cheaper there but apples were cheaper here - doesn't make sense. I would have thought it to be the other way around.

Also having access to Save-A-Lot, Aldi and some of the other discount chains probably helps too. We just recently got an Aldi's here but I haven't been there yet. For some reason, we don't get their sales circulars so I keep forgetting about them.

[MJ7]

people who spend less eat less both in quality and quantity. its not always the case, but its a general rule of thumb for those of you that shop at regular grocery stores. a huge way to save and buy local organic foods is to go to a farmers market, butcher, and/or a co-op. im all for those, but they usually require a good chunk of time and distance (for me anyways). my daily average calorie intake needs to be 3000-3200, and i dont do it buy eating garbage either. my monthly grocery budget is 215 for just myself. i shop deals on everything, so i dont have a set grocery list, it changes with whatever is on sale that given week.

[CaptainNJ]

Originally Posted by arrieros81

I think the most frugal people here spend consciously, and make staples (grains, cereals, legumes, pasta) the bulk of their diet, with some produce and dairy mixed in here and there. Eating simply.

I don't consider fruits and vegetables to be healthy (they aren't unhealthy, but they aren't as healthy as more calorie rich foods). but I also don't understand why people pretend as if they are so expensive. every week there are sales on produce that allow me to buy fruits and veggies for under $1 per pound. you just have to be a little flexible.

[augiedogie]

We have 3 grown adults and our bill is about like yours. Maybe $100 at Walmart, but then we buy our meat and fruits and veges at other grocery stores. We eat out maybe twice a week. But I don't think its really much different than when I worked in a grocery store 45 years ago. A typical cart of groceries was about $20 then, but inflation has been about 5x, so that just about figures. I don't think anyone in this country has a right to complain. On the average we spend less on food than most other countries in comparison to our wages. We have varieties and selection we never had before, and many fruits and vegetables year round. We never had that as a kid. Personally, I think for what we pay and what we get, we should thank God for a system that delivers such good healthy food. After all, want to buy your meat in an open air market with the flies all over the place?

[Mikeh90]

Hello there!

I spend 120 almost every week!!! And it's just me and my wife. We spend a lot not including eating out and beer or wine. This is in brownsville Texas tho. Moving to houston soon.