May 2012 Grocery Challenge

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  • OMG I've just seen this thread and just want to cry. In absolute honesty, we spend about 875/ month on food. Miles above anyone else. I feel like an alcoholic coming clean. I do count every receipt religiously so really know my bills. I can't even imagine we'd even half this let alone reduce by even more as I do try even now ie home cook, use leftovers. There is 5 of us, one in nappies but this seems common to a few of you. We never go on holiday - it's no wonder as I must be throwing money away by the bucketload. My hub is a bit awkward about scrimping and just will not deprive himself on any level but that still leaves 4 of us in my control. I actually feel like I've been hit in the stomach.....
  • jedi82
    jedi82 Posts: 410 Forumite
    edited 1 May 2012 at 4:15PM
    argent3216 wrote: »
    OMG I've just seen this thread and just want to cry. In absolute honesty, we spend about 875/ month on food. Miles above anyone else. I feel like an alcoholic coming clean. I do count every receipt religiously so really know my bills. I can't even imagine we'd even half this let alone reduce by even more as I do try even now ie home cook, use leftovers. There is 5 of us, one in nappies but this seems common to a few of you. We never go on holiday - it's no wonder as I must be throwing money away by the bucketload. My hub is a bit awkward about scrimping and just will not deprive himself on any level but that still leaves 4 of us in my control. I actually feel like I've been hit in the stomach.....

    Hi, don't worry! You have found us now :). It is amazing how you can bring your shopping down but taking little steps ie try dropping a brand (I never used to eat ANYTHING unless it was branded but tried this and have mostly value stuff now). The posters on here have fab advice.

    My DH was never into cutting back but slowly, I have changed his mind. TBH I didn't tell him that i was changing certain things until after he had it and liked it but it certainly got him thinking :D. He is well on board now!

    Baby steps but you can do it and you will be amazed at what you can save!

    Jedi x
    Finally getting my life on track. Onwards and upwards.
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  • Coxy11
    Coxy11 Posts: 4,837
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    argent3216 wrote: »
    OMG I've just seen this thread and just want to cry. In absolute honesty, we spend about 875/ month on food. Miles above anyone else. I feel like an alcoholic coming clean. I do count every receipt religiously so really know my bills. I can't even imagine we'd even half this let alone reduce by even more as I do try even now ie home cook, use leftovers. There is 5 of us, one in nappies but this seems common to a few of you. We never go on holiday - it's no wonder as I must be throwing money away by the bucketload. My hub is a bit awkward about scrimping and just will not deprive himself on any level but that still leaves 4 of us in my control. I actually feel like I've been hit in the stomach.....

    Awww hun, don't beat yourself up! Maybe try to reduce your total spends by a little for the first month. It's amazing what you can do if you cook from scratch, drop down a brand etc.

    I think it's important to remember that 5 people in one house won't spend the same as another. I also live with a food snob (he admits it!) but we have reached compromise on some foods and I think eat better because I homecook more now.

    Chin up luvvie.
    Cross-stitch WIP: Durene Jones Haberdashery Shop 365 1p challenge member No.6 Read 24 books in 2024 - currently reading The Various Haunts of Men by Susan Hill 1/24
  • hex2
    hex2 Posts: 4,736
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    argent3216 wrote: »
    In absolute honesty, we spend about 875/ month on food. Miles above anyone else..

    Argent, don't fret. Mine used to be similar and we still have the odd bad month. Contained mine through small changes (like changing what we ate for 'health' reasons ;) which got rid of a lot of the expensive junk) and cooking from scratch a lot more. I also changed where and how we shop which has paid off. It isn't about starving people but about taking control of your spending,

    We only drink decent coffee for example, but I only buy it when it is on offer and then I buy as much as I can afford.
    'If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need' Marcus Tullius Cicero
  • jumblejack
    jumblejack Posts: 6,599 Forumite
    Argent,

    Welcome to the thread. :wave:

    You will have LOADS of support on here. :T

    Why not start with down branding, buying supermarket brands.
    You can refill a lot of branded packagings do hubby will never know!
    Coffee, tea, cereals etc can all be refilled without raising suspicion;)

    Next tip is don't buy a weekly shop in one shop.

    I usually go to the shops after tea/early evening to check out the reductions on chilled/bread and grocery aisles.
    My meals are worked out by what reductions I have purchased.

    Make sure you run your receipts in to either Tesco price check or Asda price guarantee as you may be able to generate a voucher to use on your next shop.

    Moneysupermarket is a wonderful site. Just type in the items on your list and you can compare what they are currently selling for in the major supermarkets.

    You CAN do it!!!!!
    :A Every moment is a gift. That's why we call it the present.!:A
    Grocery Spend Weekly Challenge (Sat-Fri):£30.50/£40
  • Sallybunny congratulations! I hope you are feeling ok :)

    NSD today. I was intending to go to sm for a small shop but I was up half the night throwing up. Thankfully no one else has had it so I think it must be down to a prawn sandwich I had for lunch :( consequently today has been a long day. No prawns will be consumed in our house for a while!
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  • abitofhelp
    abitofhelp Posts: 483 Forumite
    Sallybunny congrats on your news that really is great.
    argent3216 welcome aboard you will have a fab time on this thread and will learn all sorts of new tricks and recipes.
    my oh has no idea how little we are spending on food since joining this thread. he is a bit of a snob and i really enjoy watching him eat a chilli or lasagna padded out with oats or lentils and grated veg.he has no idea, its fab. Also think of that lovely holiday you could go on next year with your savings.
    Grocery Challenge 24th Feb-28 Dec 2012 £2000/£1404
    18th May- 15th June 2012 £100/£75
    Dont Throw Food Away 2012 May £5/0
  • jumblejack
    jumblejack Posts: 6,599 Forumite
    Taken from hukd:
    Deals
    All
    36° Lidl half price weekend offers - Sat 5th/ Sun 6th
    3

    No meat offer this weekend, but that may vary by area so check lidl.co.uk from Thursday for your local offers

    Manor Vale Medium Mature Cheddar 400g - £1.19
    Strawberries 500g - 99p
    Tomato Pasta Sauce 530g - 37p
    Jacobs Biscuits For Cheese 200g - 92p
    Found 4 hours, 5 minutes ago by
    nicster08
    Save for later

    Thanks nicster. You are a legend:T
    :A Every moment is a gift. That's why we call it the present.!:A
    Grocery Spend Weekly Challenge (Sat-Fri):£30.50/£40
  • Suffolk_lass
    Suffolk_lass Posts: 9,289
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    made two weetabix cakes last night, had a bag of prunes i wanted to use up so chopped hem up instead of using raisins, no one noticed in fact elder DS had a second slice so it must have been ok.

    mrs-moneypenny I bet they noticed this morning, even if they didn't know why...:rotfl:
    I have a few questions. I will sound stupid, but never mind. When is blackberry season? And when is sloe season? How much fat do I need for a pastry topper for a 6" pie? And, specifically for Florenceem, how do you do the garlic wedges you show us? Look lush, and would be a change from normal wedges.

    DD ate at a friend's today. They had McD. I don't mind them having that every now and then as a treat, but I had planned that in for Friday as we have zero time for dinner, so now I have to rethink that.
    PG x

    I would use 3oz flour, 1.5oz fat and a pinch of salt for a 6" topper - nice and thin and stuck to the pate with water, painted with milk unless you have a bit of egg from something

    How about a bowl of pasta with hm tomato sauce and topped with a sprinkle of grated cheese instead of McD? - you could do it before and just nuke to re-heat - if the tomato sauce is mixed through the pasta it won't go hard. We like it cold for LO lunches too

    My hm tomato sauce was on an Italian cookery course taught by an elderly Italian lady called Rosanna, who used to be the chef at the County Hotel in Chelmsford - opposite the Essex cricket ground they used to accommodate all the visiting cricket teams (probably still do). It's cheap and easy and very tasty.

    Rosanna sauce
    can of chopped tomatoes
    clove of chopped garlic
    teaspoon of sugar
    teaspoon tomato puree
    3 tablespoons olive oil
    salt and pepper
    herbs (basil, thyme and mint)

    Heat the oil, add the chopped garlic and saute for 1 minute, then add the rest of the ingredients - simmer for ten minutes.

    This is also brilliant for a pizza base topping

    HTH
    SL
    Save £12k in 2024 - #2 target is £5000
    OS Grocery Challenge 2024 16.02% spent or £480.73/£3,000 annual
    I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the Grow your own thread
    My Debt Free Diary Get a grip Woman
  • Suffolk_lass
    Suffolk_lass Posts: 9,289
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    argent3216 wrote: »
    OMG I've just seen this thread and just want to cry. In absolute honesty, we spend about 875/ month on food. Miles above anyone else. I feel like an alcoholic coming clean. I do count every receipt religiously so really know my bills. I can't even imagine we'd even half this let alone reduce by even more as I do try even now ie home cook, use leftovers. There is 5 of us, one in nappies but this seems common to a few of you. We never go on holiday - it's no wonder as I must be throwing money away by the bucketload. My hub is a bit awkward about scrimping and just will not deprive himself on any level but that still leaves 4 of us in my control. I actually feel like I've been hit in the stomach.....

    argent3216 Don't worry - my household is only 5 including the cats and I was spending over £650 before Christmas (not including fuel for cars and anything I was sneaky enough to get DH to buy on his CC!):eek:

    I am on a journey to reduce and learning valuable lessons, along with almost everyone on this thread (although there are one or two who have it completely sorted such as Florenceem )- so, welcome and read on in. Definitely it is good advice to read the first few posts on page 1 which are our "standing bible" of do's and don'ts. If you have hoarder tendencies (like me, who is prepared for the next Suffolk siege) then read up on Mothership's 2nd purse system in post #6 and try Linz's great tracker spreadsheet (there is also a whole 2nd purse thread now too). I recommend regular speed-reading as we average 50-odd posts a day at this stage of each month.

    Other top tips are to "thank" as you read (so you know where you got to) and keep a running total in your signature (User CP and Edit signature from the menu on the left) - and subscribe (Thread tools; subscribe to thread) so every time you go to your User CP you can see when there are new posts to catch up on! Good luck and keep posting!

    SL
    Save £12k in 2024 - #2 target is £5000
    OS Grocery Challenge 2024 16.02% spent or £480.73/£3,000 annual
    I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the Grow your own thread
    My Debt Free Diary Get a grip Woman
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