Ridiculous food spend...

Frugal_life

We bulk buy the products we know have a long shelf life (rice, pasta, cat food, soap powder, bog roll etc - stored in cupboards, under the bed, anywhere!). The weekly shop is done from a meal plan and "top up" shops are done mid week for bread and milk (small freezer so no room to bulk buy and freeze) but I make sure I only use cash (generally take an extra 50p with me just in case they're OOS of the bread or milk I usually buy and I need to buy other brands...

Generally, both the OH and I leave our debit cards at home and deal only in cash. Understandably, the desire to want that little something extra will always be there so we each allow ourselves an additional £10 each as personal miscellaneous spending money per week, with any leftover change then going into our joint sealed Christmas fund pot (collected over the course of the year and then opened on 31st October).

Has worked well so far!

Sally_A

My biggest bugbear is that I plan meals, then get told midway through the week that daughter will not be there, or husband needs a quick meal as has to get out within 30 minutes.

I've tried a family calendar on the wall for these things, usually to no avail. The downside is I end up with food for a meal that is not needed, and not always freezable......and I still need to feed me!!

maman

Sally_A wrote: »

My biggest bugbear is that I plan meals, then get told midway through the week that daughter will not be there, or husband needs a quick meal as has to get out within 30 minutes.

I've tried a family calendar on the wall for these things, usually to no avail. The downside is I end up with food for a meal that is not needed, and not always freezable......and I still need to feed me!!

It's not always possible but I try to build in flexibility to the meal plan. I always have a couple of nights with a ready meal like chilli or Bolognese that can stay in the freezer if not needed. If I have leftovers then I can generally keep them in the fridge for lunch. If it's just me then I'll either have leftovers or something simple like an omelette or jacket potato.

jinkster

We shop online at Ocado and that is it.....

We go around the kitchen clicking online what we need and what we are going to eat for the next week or so. And that is it.... Waitrose food and it is saving us a fortune.

tiredwithtwins

As a few posters have already said, taking money only (out of a preset budget) works really well for me - I find leaving the debit/credit cards at home is the most effective way of not over spending for me!!
good luck, you will find the help you get on this forum can change your life! (well, your spending habits at least!!)
Sue

HornetSaver

sarahj1986 wrote: »

I also recommend eating in "season" the BBC food pages shows items in season per month. If its in season it tends to taste better and be cheaper in price.

Excellent tip!

What I would add to this is to buy British if the prices are close enough. Not for patriotic reasons, but because due to geography the food should be fresher - even a British farm with a bad distribution plan will get the goods from the field to the shelf quicker than a cargo ship from Africa or the Americas.

HOWMUCH

I too have spent so much less since using cash only, meal planning there's only 2 of us and I often cook for 4 and 2 meals go into the freezer.

PasturesNew

I only foodshop when I've run out of a lot of things and have spent some time "going without".

Making a list doesn't work for me - because it's useless when you get to the shop and they've not got what's on the list. I just browse for what I fancy .... but I'm tight, so browsing by price -v- what else I could eat for less.

► Never ever throw anything out. I've zero waste on food.
► Set a mental "price per meal" in your head, so you know when you're spending more than intended.
► Be careful you're not filling the basket/trolley with tat that you didn't go out for, don't need, have been sucked into buying as it was shiny. e.g. household knick-knacks, gadgets and special deals brought in weekly and placed in stacks.
► Is booze being slipped into the trolley? No booze.... you don't need it.
► Sweets/chocs etc - try to limit yourself to one/cheap selection per week, max.
► Don't automatically buy treats just because you've run out. Buy a treat, use it .... but don't then see it as regular shopping and simply replenish it. Go without. e.g. biscuits, crisps, desserts from the chiller, ice creams, cakes .... if they're in the house you'll eat them, so will then be out of them .... if you don't buy them then you can't have "run out" you've simply got none.
► Be aware of the price of every ingredient and try to change your cooking so you either do without the pricey ingredient, or you find a cheaper alternative. e.g. chilli con carne doesn't need £1s worth of peppers; spag bol doesn't need £3 of wine.

Pepperoni

Thanks all! What do you all think is a realistic budget? There's x2 adults and 1 x 1.5 year old in the house. Thanks.

bubbs

The thing is you say a ridiculous amount but never actually said how much, so its no good someone saying £40 for example and you are at the moment spending £80 as this will never work, you need to do it gradually