I am wondering how much you spend per week on food? How big is your family? Have you learned any tricks to saving money? We are a family of 5 and spend about $650+ per month on food. That is with couponing and shopping at a discount grocery store 25 miles away at least once per month. That leaves the other three weeks with shopping at our one grocery store within 25 miles.
Kim
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I live in one of the most expensive cities in this country and don't even spend close to that on groceries every month. We are a family of 3 and one of the way but my husband eats enough for two adult men on a DAILY basis (not just for dinner like at every meal/snack) We spend about 100 a week on food only and it's only varies by more when I run out of something that I don't buy often (such as a spice or something) Here is how I shop that saves me tons of money.
1. Cook. If you want to save money you have to put in the time to cook your own food. A TV dinner can cost as much as 5.00 a box (Standard for Stouffer's or Hungry Man or Boston Market meals here) and it won't even be very filling, or tasty. A can of soup is like 2.00 here, I can make a whole pot of soup for about 7 bucks and it will be enough for two days
2. Coupons, you don't even have to waste money on the Sunday Paper, just print them out on your computer or at the Library or at work.
3. You have the internet, so there is no excuse not to check circulars, gas is expensive I am not traveling 25miles for a cheaper store, when the place down the block is having a big sale. You can go online to your local supermarkerts website and see what is on sale at all of them, you can make your list based on that, or shop at the store that has most of your list on sale (if you premake one, I always make mine based on whats on sale)
4. You come to my house I have a cabinet filled with pasta, why? Because I got 20 boxes for 7.00 on a major sale one day, that makes every box less than 50 cents each. I can make different dinners with each one, and I don't have to use them in the next few days, they last for years. When canned or boxed goods go on sale like that, scoop them up. Even something like cheese (which if unopened will last a few months, but after its opened it will go bad in about a week) can be bought in bulk if the sale is good. Stock up. Even on TV dinners or other junk quick foods if they are on sale. When lean cuisine is on sale 10 for 10 I grab like 20 boxes lol
5. Spices and such will cost you money if you don't have them on hand already. I have a whole shelf in my cabinet devoted to spices and some things are costly (vanilla, cinnamon) and other things I don't hesitate to buy at the local discount store or from a store brand, don't ever buy mixes like Mrs. Dash or McCormick because they are costly and if you read the ingredients you will see you can make them yourself at home easily.
6. Don't buy junk food, bake your own. It's a lot cheaper to bake a cake from scratch and it will have more servings than a box of snack cakes. (Even the cake mix in a box is cheaper) Only exceptions are really ice cream and chips, which you can make yourself, but lets be real.
Things like cake, brownies, pie, cookies make yourself and if you have kids it can be a fun bonding experience too.
7. Find a farmers market in your area and buy produce from there, it will be local (cheaper) and fresher (yum) than anything in your grocery store, since it's local they will only have what's in season but watch the price difference. We get apples 1.09a lb at the store at the farmers market I get 5 apples for a dollar, which means I get at least 2-3 apples more for the same price. Google Farmers Markets and your zip code.
Stores like walmart will beat other store prices by 10% if you bring in the flyer for the store proving the price is less somewhere else.
I listed some recipe sites below in case you need ideas on what to cook or to learn how to make something. Hope this helps you save money! 650 is alot to spend on only food! Good luck!
chefgrille
I spend no more than $30 a week on groceries for my husband and myself. (That's just human food, not soda or TP or cat food and such.) Our local supermarket is 4 blocks away and competes with Walmart's prices, or I can just go to Walmart after work since it's across the intersection from my job. So that saves on gas. The only meat I buy is from the discount meat bin at Safeway, it's everything that expires that day. So it's 30% off, plus my club card, and I throw it in the deep freeze for when we want it. We eat a lot of rice and bean based dishes, that saves on money too.
Anonymous
I say go to the best discount shop u can find and do 1 months shopping, only buy in your local grocery if u have to. From month to month u will gradually get to know how much of what u need to buy, have u tried growing ur on fruit and veg? Maybe raising some lamb beef chickens?
Making ur own bread?
I actually think ur food bill is quite cheap, then again I do live in australia and things are extermely expensive.
Family of 4 cost about $250per week
aMORDulce
family of 2 and we spend about 200 per week
Anonymous
I have a family of 5 and spend approx 500 a month. I get paid bi-weekly so I normally spend about 250 each time I get paid. I don't use coupons, nor do I buy cheapo food.