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a month without supermarket - new challenge for 2011 starts at post 1013
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Good luck in your challenge. I would love to avoid supermarkets, but unfortunately it's either that or nothing here! I reallly miss going to a proper greengrocer's and a proper bakery where they actually bake on the premises, rather than buy what's been made in the bread factory, and spray an aerosol of "fresh-baked bread" aroma around!0
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Well this is good as I have just put a ban on going to tesco! Weaning ourselves off of supermarkets but still using lidl at the moment!0
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i am really glad that this thread is making peeps.... go into shops that they never did before..... and even better there is not much diff in price... and in a lot of cases it IS cheaper than the big supermarkets......
i have just come back from the butchers.. spend just under £24...... got 3 joints of beef..... wanted one large joint.. but they were just about to close and didnt have much left......4 huge pork chops...... a gammon slipper ( why its called that i dont know maybe some one could let me know ) and a pot of fruit chutney......as we have now run out of the rhueburb chutney that i made in the summer.....
i know the gammon joint that i will boil and use for sandwiches next week for the kids and hubby's lunch box... was £4.50 it was the same weight as the one i bought in asda about 2 weeks ago....and the one in asda was either £6.50 or £7.50.......so a big saving there....
didnt manage to get milk as i had to rush back as hubby needed the car.....
the 4 big oranges i had from the market yesturday for a £1. were soooooo juicy and sweet... exactly like oj they have now all gone.... sorry i didnt buy more now.....
will be making a pork chop dinner for tea.... using some of the veg from the veg bag i bought for £2.....will try and do a bread crumn topping for them... which i read about somewhere on os.....
and apple pie for afters......Work to live= not live to work0 -
the flour is sold in per box..... and its 1 case per box.... there is 5 bags of 1.5 kg in a case...
so its 15 bags of flour......to warrent free delivery..
thats the way i read it.....
Sorry, I looked again and I was looking at the 500gm packs page which said three cases to a box - didn't notice that it was different on the 1.5kg page :rolleyes:
I've decided to try this no supermarket thing aswell, started this morning.
I went to the semi-local farmshop (proper one not posh one) and got all my fruit, veg, frozen stuff, eggs, milk and butter for £20 then into town to the health food shop for shampoo, soap and moisuriser for my hands(glycerine and rosewater - seems very good so far), then to bakery for some bread, home bargains for bicarb (380g for 15p) and dried milk for making yogurt.
Only thing I need now is UHT milk, sliced meat and orange juice - going to have to be Morrisons for those I think. Then I'm going to try making some yogurt and biscuits.0 -
We've had to go to the co-op twice. 1st time was cos DH needed cash and cash machine not working, so he had to buy something to get cashback. Today DS wasn't well and wanting some chicken soup, with no totally independant here and being 5 miles from town centre is was either there or Spar (that didn't have any). Still don't think that's bad.
I bought a sliced loaf in greggs also the other day. I asked at an independant first, but they don't slice their crusty loaves. DH just made the comment that the bread looked nice, don't think he's noticed we haven't sone a supermarket shop this week yet.
Possible problem on Monday when both kids are going to a holiday playscheme (DH working from home) and need packed lunch. It's sandwich fillings I've got a potential problem with, no ham or cheese in, prawns and tuna will be fine for DS, but don't think DD will like either :cool: might try her over w/end to see.
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I went forpetrol today and it was one of the garages with marks and sparks in it. Before I know it I spent £14.50:o . Did I need it?? Did I L!! No wonder I'm skint lol xx5 Year plan. April 2020 to June 2025- CC and mortgage free by time I'm 60
Currently CC £23,674.36 /£14,895.41/£14315.42
Mortgage £28,214.65/ £26,254.71/ £25,746.43
By end 2020 I want CC at £ 19,000.00.
By end 2021 I want CC at £10,000.000 -
millionaire_in_training wrote:I went forpetrol today and it was one of the garages with marks and sparks in it. Before I know it I spent £14.50:o . Did I need it?? Did I L!! No wonder I'm skint lol xx
this week since i have used bakers...butchers......fruit/veg stall at maket.....
there's not much to tempt you to over spend.. or buy things you dont really need......
ok....at the bakers i did buy 2 mince and onion pies for hubby's lunch box..... but i prob.. would have bought a lot more junk to put in there if i had gone to tescos.....
fruit and veg....i prob spend more than what i normally would at mr t.. but i did buy my sack of spuds.......
these first few days havent been that bad... but its from now on in....... thats going to be the challenge..... as my store cupboard things are slowing starting to run out....
i know sugar in makro is 67p a bag..... and its 72p in tescos.... but i would have to buy an outter of i think its 12......ok its not going to go off. so as makro is a cash and carry...do you think i could use them in my challenge......as its not a supermarket
.. and now that i am cooking totally from scratch....i will be using more of it....but i got to watch cash flow.....if i am going to try and stick to a weekly budget of about £60.. to begin with anyway.... realisticly i need to get it £50. or under......
i have also noticed.....i have less in my rubbish... no empty biscuit wrappers etc......empty packaging......so there is a lot less packaging when you shop locally...
i have also started recycling more.... with out any effort....the fruit and veg where put into brown bags... which the grubby ones are now in my compost bin.... also the paper bags from the bread......
plus if i can manage to stay away from mr t's i will not pick up all the flyers ....which most of the time i just go straight into my bin anyway.....Work to live= not live to work0 -
I think for me it's going to be a matter of priority
local 1st (if it's around the same price or only a few pennies more, or if it works out like that by being better quality - our butchers mince goes far far further than the same weight from supermarket)
online independants next (if I am unable to support my local shops I should help support someone elses
cash & carry (this caused me a bit of dilemma but I figure by them getting the business they will be able to keep supplying the local shops at good prices - I know I'm not going to make much difference on my own but I'm thinking of the overall principle. Our makros is 60 miles away but it is also the nearest large shopping centre and I do have to make the trip to clothe DD's once in a while - so I shall stock up while I'm there. Failing that it's bookers 15 miles away (very small & not much choice).
In case of dire emergancy the supermarkets! I figure that some have to be better than others.
We have
Wilkinsons - not supermarket but good for my borax etc. I can't get it anywhere else except sometimes boots so at the end of the day they are providing a service. the local ironmongers/hardware was long gone before they arrived.
Aldi/Lidl - not been here long and they are offering a real (if supermarket) alternative as I think they need all the help they can get to stand up to Mr T.
Morrisons - sell some local products which I think is good and often have fruit and veg from the UK when Mr T's doesn't but apart from that
Asda - make a point of selling local fruit & veg if they can but apart from that
Tescos - last year was the only place in town not selling local spuds:mad: also now don't stock the larger boxes of bisto powder because "there isn't the demand" they do stock loads of yucky gravey granuals in all different flavours though:rolleyes:
So far my only real problem is worcester sauce, I have found a couple of receipes to make my own:j however that has led to the next missing ingredient - soy sauce! I think I may end up to resorting to goodnessdirect while I find my feet in nearby towns.
I have had great fun using the bt directory website. You can search for a business by type (eg greengrocer) and town so I now have a few starting points.
Local shop has offered us an account - don't do it for many but since we seem to be shopping there regular It'll save them lots of little transactions and us trying to find change or write a cheque for small amounts. Happy for us to pay it once a week or once a month or when it reaches a certain amount, whatever suits us best. How's that for service!0 -
good going ksour........
having your local grocer offering a 'tab' account... how os is that.......
i will prob.. have to resort to going to the co-op later for milk and high juice........but at least it makes me feel a little better in that they do have ethics........
but i am not counting that as though i have failed.....a £3 - £4 spend there is better than about £80 - £90 spend in mr t's....Work to live= not live to work0 -
Milk and high juice is hardly failing! don't suppose you'll be passing any cows on your way? worth a thought!:D
One of my DD's loves well diluted orange juice as an orange squash which has got me out of trouble before now - other DD doesn't like it though but she drinks pure orange juice by the bucketful given a chance. I'll be hitting the buying of orange juice problem by next week.
Have talked to both DD's about "if you ate less penguins & crisps and had nice yummy homemade cakes instead I wouldn't have to drag you round tescos so often" it would appear I have their total support!0
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