a month without supermarket - new challenge for 2011 starts at post 1013

ginnyknit

I am totally disillusioned with the supermarkets and made a conscious decision tonight (before I saw this) to avoid them. Will be hard to find everything elsewhere but am going to make an effort to keep the promise to myself and all my witnesses here

Tropicalmoments

COOLTRIKERCHICK wrote: »

When i done this all those years ago...lol..

I bought less with my money, but again it was better quality, and it also kept me within our budget, as there was no impulse buys etc, when i only wanted milk or washing pwder, i would only come out of the shop with just that, not 3 bags and £20 lighter.....lol...

It worked for some people, it didnt work for others...

Although a lurker at that time I remember trying this and being amazed at the results (and yes you would have thought I'd have maintained doing this but you know how it is....................old habits die hard)

I'm in for doing this again - last time I bought meat from the butchers and other things as and when required from various places, including the supermarket where necessary, but I did save a lot of money each week on my shopping bill and the most important factor was, as CTC says, no impulse buys!! I think we all underestimate the power of bogof, special offer etc... on our shopping bills. Oh and remember the shopping list - it's so important!!

pennyjar56

I've been thinking about ditching the supermarket especially since the panorama documentary on recently. I have found a local farm shop, butcher and also a home delivery service of local producers- it may be worth having a search on the internet for something similar in your area. I am hoping to cut my supermarket visits down to once a month for items i can't find elsewhere. I think i'll be making alot of meals from scratch but hopefully they will taste better and give the producers a better deal. Supermarkets are convenient and cheap but i would prefer to support my local food producers.

parsonswife8

Righty-o!!!

I will join in from today. I've got two freezers full of meat, fish, poultry and veg etc, a well stocked store cupboard, fruit and veg that was delivered yesterday, milk, orange juice and eggs get delivered by our milkman three times a week.

I have got a breadmaker and a stock of bread and cake mixes, tins of fruit in juice, tinned fish etc.

I got a big meat delivery just before christmas from an online butcher.

I've got a stockpile of toilet rolls, paper towels, tissues and toiletries.

If DH needs some bananas, berries or croissants, he can go to the local Co-op.

:T

Caterina

I was about to reply enthusiastically, as I do not like to shop in supermarkets at all, but then remembered my pile of £5 off £25 vouchers for shopping in M&S in January. I need to think this over carefully and also discuss it with the family, as the main reason for supermarket shopping is because the kids whinge that they want something otherwise difficult (was going to write impossible but this is not the right word) to find elsewhere.

You never know, I might yet embrace this challenge by tomorrow evening!

Spiggle

Hello All,

I would like to do something like this. Currently and for many years we have avoided buying meat, f&v from supermarkets but buy instead from the local butcher and greengrocer (far better value and quality). But I have this past year slipped into regularly visiting MrT, MrS or MrM for everything else.

I do the Grocery Challenge and last week after that brilliant Panorama programme posted that I was going to ditch the big four as from February (I have a bundle of vouchers and points to use up in Jan and I can't bring myself to lose around £110). We have a Coop now in our town and to visit the large one about four miles away would just involve a 1.5 mile detour on the way home from work (rather than slipping into MrT also on the way home).

So my question is do you count the Coop as a supermarket?

It is an ethical organisation with membership, has a large range of fair trade goods (and free range/organic if you buy fresh produce there) and so whilst it works on a similar large scale selling principle it also works locally. What do you think?

If you feel it is not a sm in the framework of this thread then I'll have no hesitation in joining up please!

I look forward to hearing your views.

All the best,
Spigs

katenut

Hmm, interesting point Spiggle! I do try my hardest to avoid the big supermarkets, but i shop in our local co-op regularly. The other thing I like about it (apart from what you have already mentioned) is they do a large amount of 'local choice' foods which are supporting local food producers. I also like the fact that they use free-range eggs in all their own-brand products.

We buy a lot of our meat from local farmers or farm shops, and the quality is so much better than T*sco. I would be interesting in joining up, but depends on the general view on if the co-op counts as a supermarket!

Kate xx

[Deleted User]

Sounds interesting and as I am on a real frugal trip in January I will probably shop from my bulging cupboards and fridge/freezer for most of the time

artichoke

Hi all

Interesting point re the co-op....

I was at a Transition North conference last year and one of the main speakers was from the head of Co-op Farms who supply food for the Co-op supermarket...and explained how the co-op aim to supply at least 25% of british food from their own farms.

see here http://transitionculture.org/2009/11/07/the-transition-north-conference-with-audio-files/

I personally think the co-op has a good track record on animal welfare, and is much more ethical than the other big guns...

but i would personally still try and buy meat and other foods from local producers directly - but i am biased as a local food producer;)

I think everyone has to set their own rules for any challenge to an extent as everyone's circumstances are different, I live in a rural area and it is perhaps much easier for rural households to buy food direct from producers, I try and buy food direct but at the moment the co-op is where i buy (fair trade) tea, coffee, flour (its is british flour at the co-op but canadian at sainsburys, etc..

I am in a weird position as at the moment i am setting up a local food co-operative that will sell food direct to local households and the venue we will be using is directly next door to our local co-op store! So our local food co-op will be next door and in direct competition to "The Co-op" - it will be interesting to see how they react;)

so if people have to use a supermarket type store to buy households goods i personally see the co-op as the least evil and most ethical of them all...

and if people become members of the co-op they can in principle get involved and vote on issues...

what do others think about the co-op?

art

hex2

I re-read a lot of this thread last night and found some really useful stuff. The co-op/makro/et al debate is an interesting one. An early post suggested priorities, with makro/bookers/costco/co-op being the last resort for stuff you simply cannot find elsewhere.

My commitment is going to be to support local business as much as I can. Our village co-op employs quite a few people and I would hate to see it close.

Meat and chicken - internet www.clarebarry.co.uk bulk buys from http://www.joseph-morris.co.uk/ (leics based butchers) make my own sausages
Fish - I want to eat more of this, and will check out http://www.martins-seafresh.co.uk/ as suggested
fruit and veg - grow a lot, freeze some - have an ok farm shop http://www.cooksfarmshop.co.uk will go back to local to leics veg box scheme www.sealwood.com - both A&C and riverford deliver here too. Fruit is the biggest problem, couple of greengrocers a few miles away if I get organised
pet food/bird feed - farm shop
general household - hardware shop in the village, although I am not sure about their sourcing priorities. Also a small local chemists.
milk, bread and other fresh stuff - can get from veg box people, or the bakery, or the farm shop

Problem areas will be fruit juice cartons (for lunchboxes), diet coke, and the capsules for my dolce gusto machine.

Reading back over that I am lucky in what I have locally, and I want to support it more. When I have a car and don't work huge hours this is achievable and sustainable, it may need tweaking if I change job shortly. I have tried for a while to not use supermarkets and have cut down to one delivery from Mr S a month that is mostly household stuff/coffee pods and coke.

Committing to try this going forward.


ETA Artichoke, I like the sound of the direct food thing, I wish there was one round here.