Oct 27 2008
I need a loan to buy my groceries!
I went grocery shopping the other night and each time I go, the prices have risen a bit more.
I’ve noticed that things have increased by as much as 20-30 cents per item. That doesn’t seem like much, but when you’re on a tight budget and you buy, say 100 items, every little bit adds up.
Even the cheapo stores where I like to shop have gone up. When I first started shopping at my local Save-a-Lot store, 15 ounce cans of tomato sauce were about 27 cents each. Then they jumped to 30 cents. Then to 33 cents (3 for 99 cents the tags declared!), now they’ve went up to 39 cents each.
I can remember a few years ago I could really stock up on groceries - have my cart completely packed full (and almost overflowing) with enough stuff to last my family of five for a whole month and it would cost between $150-200. Now, I can fill the cart half full, picking and choosing what we really, really need to get through the next two weeks (like I did Saturday) and it came to $107!
What are you favorite tips for combatting those high grocery prices? What are you doing to save money on the food your family eats?
I make a weekly meal plan and shop sales along with coupons in order to make the money stretch as far as I can.
Are you feeding a family of five on $200 a month still?
If so I’m still impressed.
When the weather is favorable, we always go to local Farmer’s Markets for fruits and vegetables. They are much less expensive, and are generally poison-free.
My wife and I have taken up a tradition of our grandparents as well…canning. We also make stews and dishes that keep for several days, and try to implement creative side dishes to go with leftovers. And we pretty much make things from scratch, if it turns out to be cheaper. Still, it’s always around $400 a month at the store.
Our monthly food budget is around $250 - some months more like $300. We eat very little meat. We’re not vegan or anything, but we just don’t eat much meat - except for some chicken and turkey. I try to make as much as possible from scratch - when I’m not too lazy
. I also have a huge chest freezer (free off of freecycle - woohoo!) that I freeze lots of stuff in.
We also garden and as a collaborative effort, my family (parents, brother, sister-in-law and grandmother) put up (to freeze) corn my brother had grown and peaches we had bought at a local fruit stand.
So I guess our budget for a family five is rather thrifty, but I’d still like to whittle it some more. So I love to hear tips and ideas from others.
I get my weekly sales newspapaers from several stores and I plan around the sales. I also shop for veggies and fruit at my local produce shop as it’s much cheaper than the big chains. I also use coupons whenever I can find them. If I see something I normally buy which is on sale then I will stock up on that item.
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Ramen noodles baby. I live off of that stuff.
You have definitely inspired me to try harder at getting our budget down! I only thought I was thrifty. Question, does your budget include household items like paper towels, toilet paper, shampoo?