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

COOLTRIKERCHICK

hi.. rach...... good idea.......i was lucky when i started as i did have a lot of store cupboard things in..... plus a load of loo rolls which i had stocked up on last month when they were on offer.........

also i have a looooooooooooaaaaad of toiletries........which i had with the various h&b loopholes in mr t....

so changing over to not using supermarkets has been easier than i thought......little steps is the best way...... as you dont notice that way.......

if your friend is on the internet...... ask her to join us here...... it will be interesting to see how this would work in other countries..as well........... especially if she is trying to do it with ALL local produce.........

at the end of the day if you take some of your shopping away from the big guns........ its worth while......

COOLTRIKERCHICK

bargin rzl...........i am counting the big gun supermarkets.... in my challenge.....( but not cash and carry).......

i should imagine that the oriental type supermarkets are independantly owned......and i think the londis even though they are a chain.. they are franchsied out so the are independantly owned.........

its up to you.......some peeps just want to keep away from the big ones..... tescos...asda...... sainsburys..... morrissons..... etc... and they are using lidle/aldi ...co-op as a last resort... for certain items........

newlywed

We have a small local post office that stocks, naan bread, curry sauces, loo roll, teabags etc. A bit more expensive obviously but there's less chance for buying extra bits you don't need.

About 10 minutes drive from work there is also a turkish/greek shop that has olives, feta, halva, and some very reasonably priced fruit juice drinks. There is also a local green grocer near work that sells packs of pitta breads and other bits too. A local chemist is just nearby as well as the pound shops that sell loo roll etc.

rach

loo rolls etc are no problem as there are loads of small shops (99p shop etc) that sell this kind of thing.

i am going to avoid the big gun supermarkets - tesco, asda, sainsburys, somerfield. i will use lidl / aldi if i really have no other option, but i will try every other avenue first! i am going to start using the chinese / polish / asian 'supermarkets' (they are really just little shops), which should cover me for things like stir fry sauce, noodles, etc.

my friend runs the small shop / post office across the road and i reckon he would pick up some multipacks of tuna etc at the cash and carry, and let me have them at trade price

i have also just thought, a friend from church does a traidcraft stall, i can buy rice, pasta, dried fruit, tea & redbush tea etc from there. its more expensive, but all fair trade and seeing as though a bag of pasta lasts me at least a month won't make a massive difference over all!

i am going to sniff around boscombe this afternoon and see what i can find. i'd like to assure myself of a source of tinned tomatoes (i use quite a lot of these) and tuna. i also currently need some instant mash (i know, but its quick and i often work late nights!) but i bet weigh and save has that!

i am quite excited about this. just want to get my trolley sorted so i can be even better and walk to do all my shopping.

usually i do a big monthly evil tesco shop, but as i'm pretty well stocked for march i will try a weekly system instead

catznine

Just put in an order with Jimmys for the winter warmer hamper:-

1 Joint (for 4)
One Bacon Hock
500g Diced Beef
500g Neck of Lamb
500g Braising Steak
500g Minced Beef
500g Diced Port
500g Steak and Kidney
£35 plus delivery of £10

Hopefully this should last us the month.

I just missed the deadline for this week so won't get it until next Weds. We have cut down considerably on the amount of meat we consume (load up the plate with lots of veg instead) so don't mind paying a bit more for hopefully good quality (will let you know). The sausages look good too.

Now to find a milkman!

COOLTRIKERCHICK

catznine....... sound yummy...... but expensive......have you got a local butcher.....? ..let us know what it taste like.......


rach..... sound as though it got it sorted......let us know how your afternoon went at looking in the local area.....when i go to a new place... including mackro... a take a note pad with me.... and write down the shops... and the prices of the things i normally buy.......and when i come home..... i havent forgotten what i seen in what shop and for how much.............hope that makes sense.......all look at things that you dont normally buy......as then you can also meal plan around new items.. which might be cheaper.......asi say... you might have to adapt your menu slightly..... just to make the most of the cheaper things in independant shops...butchers.. bakers...etc....

vivw_2

Have had Jimmy's sausages and steak and they were wonderful...really recommend them. As a veggie for over 20yrs [until 2000] I still find eating some meat really diff. Love bacon, good sausages, mince, chicken and good steak....but nothing else and definitely nothing with a bone!!!

carolbee

we use our local butchers for all meat, our new farmers market for eggs and some veg. we also have some good farm shops around here. my problem too is the staples, ie coffee, sugar, flour etc. my next job is trying to find a local miller, going to look on Big Barn website for that, for my bread and cakes.

I would like to join a food co-operative, but don't know how they really work and if I would like what they have, anyone tried these as an alternative to the supermarkets?

good luck with this, am doing baby steps at the moment towards this

catznine

I have managed to order my milk from next week from abel and Cole to be delivered with the veg box along with eggs. 2 lts of organic semi skimmed for exactly the same as Tesco charge! :j Delivered to the door as well! They also do cheese, yogurt, pulses, fish, meat and bread (I bake my own though!).

I had forgotten about poundland, they can be very good for tinned stuff. Will make sure oh goes to newsagents for his weekend papers, chemist for painkillers etc We do have a butchers in a nearby village so will try that out later too. Might have to allow a trip to farmfoods every now and then for Mrs Pataks curry sauce or make my own. Has anyone got a cheapish supply for tinned toms, sardines etc? Might have to stick to Aldi (my shop around the corner) for the tins.

little_miss_thrifty

vivw wrote:

I've been reading this and although I'd love to join I'm not sure how I'd manage. No Costco nearby , Makro is for traders only. No local grocery shops unless you count Co-op, Aldi, Lidl which are all supermarkets. Local market is in the centre of Ipswich which means battling with the crowds every Sat and paying really high parking charges. Am near Jimmy's farm but thats really expensive for everyday eating. Where do you buy fish? Baking supplies? Toilet rolls?
I would really like some practical suggestions from someone.

Hi, you must live fairly near me - Ipswich is not too far away, and i have been to Jimmy's farm when i did some research on his house (census' etc). Anyway, Some of the farm shops around Ipswich should hold flour etc for baking, and possibly frozen fish. As for toilet rolls, i found out yesterday that my local health food shop does not stock toilet rolls (not even Nouvelle!!) so i will either get them from Makro, or mail order a bulk buy from Greenpeace's Natural Collection, or the Green Shop in Shroud. I need to get some rubber gloves for cleaning - hoping that a local shop will have some.

I am cross with myself, that after so much reminding from this thread, i MISSED the Dispatches programme, but it certainly sounds as though it put a few more people off Tesco. Lets hope they watched it in my area, where the Tesco supporters group are telling us why one should be built in the middle of our market town:eek: :eek: