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Old 09-22-2017, 02:04 PM
 
13,395 posts, read 13,459,503 times
Reputation: 35711

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mikala43 View Post
I'm not sure why you are not getting what she is saying. Some can only afford X amount for the week, and if they buy in bulk it will exceed there budget, so other things wouldn't get paid like rent and stuff. Buying in bulk is great if you have spare cash for that time period, many do not.
They can buy the biggest amounts they can afford. Look at the price differential between a small bag of rice and the next size bag.

 
Old 09-22-2017, 02:13 PM
 
Location: West Florida
16,895 posts, read 15,150,623 times
Reputation: 23427
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mikala43 View Post
I'm not sure why you are not getting what she is saying. Some can only afford X amount for the week, and if they buy in bulk it will exceed there budget, so other things wouldn't get paid like rent and stuff. Buying in bulk is great if you have spare cash for that time period, many do not.
It comes down to the same amount of money. (Actually less.) That's what I'm saying. If you can afford X amount per week, you can afford 4X per month. I get what she is saying. What I'm saying is that a lot of times, people can save quite a bit of money if they use different spending patterns.
How will they exceed their budget if they buy enough to last for the month rather than having to spend money each week? They're spending less money. They will end up with a net gain.
 
Old 09-22-2017, 03:32 PM
 
16,391 posts, read 12,409,088 times
Reputation: 59506
Quote:
Originally Posted by Arcenal352 View Post
It comes down to the same amount of money. (Actually less.) That's what I'm saying. If you can afford X amount per week, you can afford 4X per month. I get what she is saying. What I'm saying is that a lot of times, people can save quite a bit of money if they use different spending patterns.
How will they exceed their budget if they buy enough to last for the month rather than having to spend money each week? They're spending less money. They will end up with a net gain.
But to save up that initial month's worth of money, they would have to not eat for four weeks.
 
Old 09-22-2017, 03:38 PM
 
Location: Middle of the valley
48,436 posts, read 34,636,835 times
Reputation: 73585
Quote:
Originally Posted by Arcenal352 View Post
It comes down to the same amount of money. (Actually less.) That's what I'm saying. If you can afford X amount per week, you can afford 4X per month. I get what she is saying. What I'm saying is that a lot of times, people can save quite a bit of money if they use different spending patterns.
How will they exceed their budget if they buy enough to last for the month rather than having to spend money each week? They're spending less money. They will end up with a net gain.
It's an issue of cash flow. You don't get the whole months money at one time. I agree that buying in bulk saves money in the long run, but that's only if you have that amount at the time.

If I have $20 dollars I can buy one small bag of rice, veggies, bread, spam (), 1 roast chicken, eggs, oatmeal, and saimin. Or one bag of chicken. Most people do not want to eat chicken for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Now if someone would give them $200 to start then they could get ahead and save money, but it's coming up with the lump sum.

I rarely get out of CostCo for under $300 (Hawaii prices) and we eat whole foods (meat, veggies, grains) and I cook every night.
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Old 09-22-2017, 03:58 PM
 
13,395 posts, read 13,459,503 times
Reputation: 35711
Quote:
Originally Posted by Arcenal352 View Post
It comes down to the same amount of money. (Actually less.) That's what I'm saying. If you can afford X amount per week, you can afford 4X per month. I get what she is saying. What I'm saying is that a lot of times, people can save quite a bit of money if they use different spending patterns.
How will they exceed their budget if they buy enough to last for the month rather than having to spend money each week? They're spending less money. They will end up with a net gain.
I get what you're saying and I agree. People could save a lot if they saved up their money and did one large, bulk shopping trip a month. The first month will take some planning, but after that it should work out well. I shop for multiple weeks during one big shopping trip.

By the way, I'm not being a jerk. I grew up poor and have been homeless. I have lived and used the ideas I'm putting forth.
 
Old 09-22-2017, 07:12 PM
 
10,599 posts, read 17,847,063 times
Reputation: 17352
Quote:
Originally Posted by GWTJ View Post
Do they really think we can't add? I have skinless chicken in organic tomato soup, with half a dozen glasses of red wine with water and cranberry juice added. Its definitely less than $9.95 and tastes great. I haven't really been doing any exercise yet weight is stable at 145 lbs. My blood tests are excellent.
What are you talking about? A meal delivery service where you prepare the food like Home Chef or a restaurant who delivers a plate of prepared food?

Also chicken in tomato soup is NOT a "meal".

I'm not saying either option is economical but it would help to understand your point and do actual MATH.

For example, you definitely didn't factor in your time shopping for the stuff and it's pretty obvious someone has to pay a driver to deliver your meal. Let alone the prep of it. So if your thread is about math - where is the math?

How are there 86 posts on such a vague statement?

And why are you emphasizing buying organic SOUP but you don't buy organic chicken? LOL


Meal Kits vs. Groceries: A Dollar-to-Dollar Investigation


The Bottom Line
You may be surprised by how meal kits and groceries actually compare on a dollar-to-dollar basis. From a purely financial perspective, the difference in two out of the three test kits was negligible. And while the dinners provided by Hello Fresh were considerably more expensive than if you had gone to the grocery store, there's also the matter of time — your time, and that of anyone else who cooks. Is that extra hour (or more) of planning and shopping time worth the $24 price difference?


As an aside, I actually tried Home Chef and it was excellent. And something you don't know is they supply recipe cards and very detailed instructions which has value to many people. AND ingredients you may not have at home or use enough.

Obviously, since you're eating chicken in tomato soup as a meal LOL.

Blue Apron starting @ $8.99:

Seared Barramundi & Sushi Rice with Avocado Tempura & Roasted Broccoli


2 Skin-On Barramundi Fillets
½ cup Sushi Rice
2 cloves Garlic
2 Scallions
1 Avocado
1 Lime
½ lb Broccoli
2 Tbsps Ponzu Sauce
1 Tbsp Mirin
1 Tbsp Sambal Oelek
1 Tbsp Sesame Oil
¼ cup Tempura Mix

Last edited by runswithscissors; 09-22-2017 at 07:38 PM..
 
Old 09-22-2017, 08:12 PM
 
Location: Denver CO
24,204 posts, read 19,127,107 times
Reputation: 38266
Quote:
Originally Posted by Arcenal352 View Post
I don't understand how getting paid "only" once a week is a problem. Isn't that how most companies operate? Either weekly, biweekly, or monthly?

Also, chicken isn't the only cheap food you can find. Pork is relatively cheap, as are certain types of fish, especially the frozen cod, flounder, etc.

As for buying larger quantities of food. You KNOW you're going to need it. It's also considerably cheaper in the long run. The same money you're spending weekly on small packages of food can instead be spent maybe monthly on larger quantities at a much lower price. Why spend $50/week on small quantities when you can spend $150/month and get much more, and then have an extra $50 left in your pocket? This is saving 101. Being poor shouldn't make a difference. How is it that the poorer person can't afford to stock up, but yet can afford to spend so much more monthly?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Arcenal352 View Post
I believe I do. My point is that it's the same money being spent. Having little or more money isn't going to change spending patterns. Either you spend it each week, or spend it once a month, with the latter being much more beneficial. The same dollar is being spent.

As for the fish, yes I'm aware that frozen cheap fish is generally not good quality. Unless one is lucky enough (like I am) to have two large Caribbean stores that import fish from the Amazon waters in frozen bags, some of which are sold at very reasonable prices.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mikala43 View Post
I'm not sure why you are not getting what she is saying. Some can only afford X amount for the week, and if they buy in bulk it will exceed there budget, so other things wouldn't get paid like rent and stuff. Buying in bulk is great if you have spare cash for that time period, many do not.
Quote:
Originally Posted by hertfordshire View Post
But to save up that initial month's worth of money, they would have to not eat for four weeks.


FINALLY! I don't understand how people don't understand that you can't spend money you don't have. If you have $50 per week to spend on food, that means aren't able to save up $150 worth of food money unless you don't eat for some of that time.

And even when people are trying to save up a bit to try to stock up, they still need to have a good month and don't get hit with an unexpected car repair or dental bill, etc. And of course, not having the money to have routine preventative care or car maintenance means that those unexpected expenses are even more likely to occur.

The reality is that it takes money to be able to save money. Anyone who doubts this should read Nickeled and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America for an eye opening glimpse of what living in poverty is really like. It was written almost 20 years ago, but things haven't improved a whole lot since then for those at the bottom on the economic ladder in our society

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001BAJ25W/...ng=UTF8&btkr=1
 
Old 09-22-2017, 09:20 PM
 
Location: Garbage, NC
3,125 posts, read 3,010,644 times
Reputation: 8245
The majority of the time, I don't think that a $10 plate is cheaper than cooking at home. Every now and then, though, I think it is.

I have mentioned on this forum before...fried seafood is our big one. My husband likes a combination of fried fish, shrimp, scallops, oysters. I like fried shrimp. He likes fries with his, and I like a baked potato with mine. We also get coleslaw, salad, and unlimited hushpuppies. This is one meal that we ALWAYS go out for. It costs us less than $30 with a tip, and these are huge portions. Buying all of that seafood would be expensive. Enough grease to fry it all in, separately (can't fry it all together, and can't reuse it for anything but seafood!), would be expensive. Handling six different frying pans or fryers in my kitchen is not appealing to me, not to mention the smell. We only go out for it once every few months, but to me, the cost is well, well worth it.

Ethnic food is another one. We don't eat a lot of it, but I can see where buying a $10 plate that you might only eat every few months is more economical than buying spices and ingredients that you'll only use a little bit of, not to mention the fact that you might not be able to get the same authentic results.

Or maybe your family is vegetarian but you're not. You might not mind eating vegetarian-friendly meals with your family the majority of the time, but every now and then, you're in the mood for a burger or a steak.

So yes, in some cases, I think $10-$15 a plate can be a "better" option than making the same meal at home. The vast majority of the time, though, you're definitely better off making it at home.
 
Old 09-22-2017, 09:52 PM
 
Location: Arizona
6,137 posts, read 3,847,160 times
Reputation: 4899
I think there are so many big spenders these days on food that 9.95 a plate sounds like a bargain.

Today for lunch I had a salad kit and banana for 2.50 and for dinner huge can of beans and potatoes for like 2.00

The big can of beans had 50 grams of protein with lots of fiber, iron and vitamins, I had four servings of veggies and a serving of fruit for half the price of one of these meal-kits.

Many of these meal packages say they are 9.95 a meal but it seems like they usually send out 6 portions a week for around 60 dollars.

I notice that many of these packages have one expensive meal that many would consider worth the 10 dollars a portion and following that for the other 4 out of 6 portion a week is something that fancy sounding but extremely cheap to make.
 
Old 09-22-2017, 10:00 PM
 
Location: Somewhere in America
15,479 posts, read 15,566,864 times
Reputation: 28462
Quote:
Originally Posted by lovecrowds View Post
I think there are so many big spenders these days on food that 9.95 a plate sounds like a bargain.

Today for lunch I had a salad kit and banana for 2.50 and for dinner huge can of beans and potatoes for like 2.00

The big can of beans had 50 grams of protein with lots of fiber, iron and vitamins, I had four servings of veggies and a serving of fruit for half the price of one of these meal-kits.

Many of these meal packages say they are 9.95 a meal but it seems like they usually send out 6 portions a week for around 60 dollars.

I notice that many of these packages have one expensive meal that many would consider worth the 10 dollars a portion and following that for the other 4 out of 6 portion a week is something that fancy sounding but extremely cheap to make.
Not necessarily big spenders. Food and restaurants pricing varies dramatically across the nation. Where I live, spaghetti and meatballs costs at least $10.95. There's no sides. No salad. Most places don't even offer bread. You literally get a bowl with spaghetti, pasta sauce, and 2 meatballs for 11 bucks. And that's at the cheapest place for this dinner. I've seen it up to $17.95 for the same thing at other local restaurants!
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