Saving on groceries

Chica_escocesa

Generally how much is a reasonable amount to spend on food per week? We are a family of 3 (me, DH and DD age 21 months). We also have my 2 stepsons one day/night per week. I would say on average I pay £100 per week for food, drink and toiletries (including nappies). Is this high? We don't buy much alcohol (prob 1-2 bottles wine per week and a box of beer every fortnight). I shop in a mixture of places - mainly Lidl and tesco. Any tips on how to cut the bill? I am a good cook and happy to cook from scratch/in bulk if it saves me a bit.

caringa

If you really want to grab some bargains, visit your local supermarket when they knock down there prices in the evening. I go to Tesco around 7pm and get fruit and veg at up to 95% off. I went this evening and got about five bags of veg/fruit plus a £15 bouquet of flowers for £4.25! The guy on the checkout couldnt believe his eyes! Most of the item will keep for a few days at least.

geordie_joe

Chica_escocesa wrote: »

Generally how much is a reasonable amount to spend on food per week?

This question has been asked many, many times before, and the simple answer is there is no reasonable amount.

Everyone is different, what is "reasonable" to one person may not be to another.

The question you should ask is "am I happy with the amount I spend on groceries?"

Chica_escocesa wrote: »

Any tips on how to cut the bill?

There are many general tips already posted in here, but people can't make suggestions for you unless they know what you buy, where you buy it and how much it costs. Oh, it would help if you list the shops you can shop at, otherwise you will have people suggesting you shop at supermarkets you can't get to. Although, even if you do list the supermarkets you can shop at some will still suggest ones you can't!

maman

Geordie joe is right and there's no 'one size fits all' answer but it would help if we knew what sort of things you buy.


You say you shop at Lidl and Tesco. Although I mostly use Aldi now I'd have said that what you need to buy in Tesco should be getting less and less.


You don't say if you have to provide packed lunches. That can sometimes be a bit more expensive as it rather depends on facilities at work. I'm generally at home at lunchtime so can make a quick meal from leftovers or eggs.


I find we can eat well on about £50 per week but that's with me cooking almost everything from scratch and very few snacks. That's for two of us but doesn't include alcohol (as that's from my entertainment budget;)). So I'd say as your DD is a toddler and the boys are only there part of the time they might count as one adult between them. So I think you could cut back by, say, £20 a week.


Why not try keeping a spending diary and then look at it after a week and a month to see if there's anything you could have done differently.

Chica_escocesa

Yes I will admit that due to time constraints I sometimes 'cheat' and do online shopping from Tesco! But I try to do Lidl as often as possible. I like the idea of keeping a diary. The kinds of things I buy? Usually I try to make our meals protein based so things like chicken, lean mince, prawns, salmon. I think that's where we could cut back - we could probably cut back a bit and try to have things like jacket potatoes, omelettes, pasta bakes etc. I am in a relatively urban area so have all supermarkets on my doorstep (asda, sainsburys, morrisons, aldi, Lidl, tesco). Thanks for all your thoughts, I will definitely be trying to trim a bit off.

Money_maker

If you go to the Old Style board, they will help you to buy better and stretch it further.

dlusman

caringa wrote: »

If you really want to grab some bargains, visit your local supermarket when they knock down there prices in the evening. I go to Tesco around 7pm and get fruit and veg at up to 95% off. I went this evening and got about five bags of veg/fruit plus a £15 bouquet of flowers for £4.25! The guy on the checkout couldnt believe his eyes! Most of the item will keep for a few days at least.

Though all stores ( even within the same chain ) operate different reduction policies. So you cannot say that because Tesco store X does its reductions at 7pm then Tesco store Y does the same.
The only way to do it is to do your own homework and visit the stores at various different times in the evenings and see for yourself what is going on ( and hope you are in an store where the appearance of someone with a reduction gun does not result in a rugby scrum ! )

dlusman

Chica_escocesa wrote: »

Usually I try to make our meals protein based so things like chicken, lean mince, prawns, salmon. I think that's where we could cut back - we could probably cut back a bit and try to have things like jacket potatoes, omelettes, pasta bakes etc.

I you want to reduce your meat costs , try bulking out your curries/mince/chillie type dishes with pulses