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Yes, I know it's possible. I knew someone whose food budget for a while was $125.00 a month -- this was six years ago, though -- and although there wasn't a lot of variety, to say the least, at least he didn't starve. His diet consisted almost entirely of just cereal, bread, milk, eggs, bananas, frozen vegetables, inexpensive meats, and peanut butter -- and a LOT of Ramen noodles (four for a dollar back then) and the cheapest boxes of macaroni and cheese.
Well, he must not have been a smart shopper, because people on this thread could have that $125 and use it only for healthy items including lean cuts of meats and fresh vegetables. He must just be to lazy to cook��
Maybe he should have hung out with more experienced folks, who can take that same $125, make it last a month AND buy steak and lobster. Oh, and $4.00 Starbucks coffees.
Well, he must not have been a smart shopper, because people on this thread could have that $125 and use it only for healthy items including lean cuts of meats and fresh vegetables. He must just be to lazy to cook��
Maybe he should have hung out with more experienced folks, who can take that same $125, make it last a month AND buy steak and lobster. Oh, and $4.00 Starbucks coffees.
Not to mention, shame on him for not buying 40 pound bags of rice and beans even though he had nowhere to cook them. Or for failing to go to bars that serve peanuts to their customers and picking the discards up off the floor and making their own peanut butter. Or better yet, search dumpsters for sour milk and make your own buttermilk /sarc
Well, he must not have been a smart shopper, because people on this thread could have that $125 and use it only for healthy items including lean cuts of meats and fresh vegetables. He must just be to lazy to cook��
Maybe he should have hung out with more experienced folks, who can take that same $125, make it last a month AND buy steak and lobster. Oh, and $4.00 Starbucks coffees.
Sorry, I ALMOST missed your sarcasm , but FWIW:
My husband and I average about $120.00 a WEEK for our low-carb diet (and this is only for food and not things like shampoo), which allows us almost everything but breads, most fruits, cereals, rice, and sweets of any kind (except VERY dark and low sugar chocolate, which isn't very sweet at all). If one divides the $120 a week in half, that would be a per person monthly budget of about $240.00 a month, which is quite a bit more than $125.00 a month, of course.
Btw, although being on this diet costs us about 60% more than our before-diet budget of about $75 a week, it is worth it because we have both lost weight, feel much better and more energetic, and my blood pressure has dropped from about 135/80 to about 115/70. It has been stated many, many times that one of the main reasons poor people are more obese (as a group), compared to those who are affluent, is because sweet, processed, high-carb and high-calorie foods cost a LOT less than low-carb foods, generally speaking. In fact, I think that it might be worth it in future health costs to offer coupons for "free" healthy food to the poor and people with SNAP benefits in addition to their regular allotment.
P.S. The reason our prior weekly grocery bill of about $75.00 a week was so low compared to many other people is because (1) we get all of our meats on sale, except for bacon, and then stock up (yes, we do have a freezer), and (2) because we cooked almost all our meals from scratch. As others have pointed out, many poor people are not able to do this because they don't have a stove and/or don't have a freezer or adequate storage space.
My husband and I average about $120.00 a WEEK for our low-carb diet (and this is only for food and not things like shampoo), which allows us almost everything but breads, most fruits, cereals, rice, and sweets of any kind (except VERY dark and low sugar chocolate, which isn't very sweet at all). If one divides the $120 a week in half, that would be a per person monthly budget of about $240.00 a month, which is quite a bit more than $125.00 a month, of course.
Btw, although being on this diet costs us about 60% more than our before-diet budget of about $75 a week, it is worth it because we have both lost weight, feel MUCH better and more energetic, and my blood pressure has dropped from about 135/80 to about 115/70). It has been stated many, many times that one of the main reasons poor people are more obese (as a group), compared to those who are affluent, is because sweet, processed, high-carb and high-calorie foods cost a LOT less than low-carb foods, generally speaking. In fact, I think that it might be worth it in future health costs to offer coupons for "free" healthy food to the poor and people with SNAP benefits.
P.S. The reason our prior weekly grocery bill of about $75.00 a week was so low compared to many other people is because (1) we get all of our meats on sale, except for bacon, and then stock up (yes, we do have a freezer), and (2) because we cooked almost all our meals from scratch. As others have pointed out, many poor people are not able to do this because they don't have a stove and/or don't have a freezer or adequate storage space.
There are also consequences of that poor diet that we pay for on the back end. This is especially true for diabetics, who subsist on a low cost diet of white breads, pastas, etc. They often end up in nursing homes 20-30 years below average age of entry due to blindness and amputations. Rather than nutrition education and stipends for healthy foods, which people complain cost too much, we instead pay thousands per month for a decade or 2 for long term care. I think it makes more sense to provide enough money to eat better and to be able to get health care and medicines, and maybe avoid that nursing home for another ten years. It would cost far far less in the long run.
The average age in nursing homes in the wealthier areas I work is somewhere in the 80’s. In the two low income areas (both relatively rural, one very mixed and the other almost exclusively Caucasia Asian which I only mention to discredit false beliefs) the average age is closer to mid-60’s. That result is tens of millions of dollars to our country every year. I believe they call that being penny wise and pound foolish.
Because with the exception of certain perishables, there is absolutely no reason to do a major shopping trip once per week.
Loading up on staples and nonperishables once a month or so and then shopping for perishables as-needed seems like a pretty responsible way to shop to me.
It also anticipates the kind of storage space that many low income people simply don't have.
At my poorest, I had half a shelf in a shared, apartment size (read: tiny) refrigerator and about 1 square foot of cabinet space. I had to shop once, sometimes twice a week because I only had space to hold a few day's worth of food. At my next apartment, we didn't even have cabinets above the two tiny counters we had, but luckily were able to haul in a rickety old bookcase someone else was tossing that three roommates used to store their food.
One of the biggest money-saving things I've been able to do is stock up when things are on-sale. I am able to buy a huge package of chicken for under $1 a pound every blue moon, and I can repackage in single servings and use for the next few months. I have a 20 lb bag of rice in the cabinet that was cents on the dollar compared to a smaller container. I have enough spices that I never have to turn to a pre-made, more expensive spice blend. But all of that requires space, know-how, and money to afford the initial outlay.
It also anticipates the kind of storage space that many low income people simply don't have.
That's true, but people were complaining about people who fill their carts at the first of the month. I'm guessing those who do so have adequate storage space for what they're buying.
There are huge letters and a giant logo on it that say what it is. And no, you don't have to be staring at it to notice it.
Are you just arguing for the sake of it?
I dunno...I know what a California EBT card looks like but I have never stood in line checking to see what kind of card a person uses to pay for their groceries, it just sounds a bit weird to be that obsessed with what other people are doing
There are huge letters and a giant logo on it that say what it is. And no, you don't have to be staring at it to notice it.
Are you just arguing for the sake of it?
I may catch it on a rare occasion but that vast majority of people checking out in front of me say 95%+ I couldn’t tell you what card they paid with unless it’s the platinum Amex
I dunno...I know what a California EBT card looks like but I have never stood in line checking to see what kind of card a person uses to pay for their groceries, it just sounds a bit weird to be that obsessed with what other people are doing
In reality it’s probably something that was seen once or twice and has now been grossly exaggerated
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, but FWIW: