What is a realistic food budget?

Poggie123

I've posted my SOA on the wannabee board today and they've suggested that you may be able to help...

We're currently spending £300 per month on our weekly shop which includes toiletries, cleaning products, loo roll etc. There's 4 of us, me, DH, DD1 who's 3 and DD2 who's 8 months.

I'm an 'own brand' sort of person on the whole, unless something branded is on bogof and works out cheaper etc and thought I was doing OK, planning menus and sticking to the list, but maybe not!

What would you think is a realistic budget for us?

DebtphobicDeirdre

Hi Poggie123
the good news is we are here to help.Some people manage to live on very little cash here and will no doubt post soon. I am no expert but I've learnt a few basics;
1. Shop at the cheapo supermarkets such as Aldi, Lidl or Netto- this will make a big difference.

2. Start home cooking meals from the indexed recipe collections and cook in large quantities and freeze for when you are short of time. Plan you meals weekly so you don't buy unnecessary extras.

3. Forget your drier- dry clothes outside. look at the cleaning threads for ways to reduce cleaning product bills- e.g. I use half a Lidl dishwasher tablet for all dishwashing and it never gives me a problem.

No doubt you will get loads more replies and if you view it all as an adventure it could even be fun! Good luck love DeeDee xxxx

MRSMCAWBER

Hi there poggie123

have you thought about perhaps reducing in stages??? Less chance of it being a shock to your DH and wee ones system;) ...if you try -say and do this month for £250 and then next month for £200 you will know when you have hit a level where you can be comfy without going without.... if you spend enough time on here you will be amazed at some of the ideas for meals etc...and some great recipes for replacing the"goodies" that your family are probably used to:D ... there are homemade versions of hobnobs etc..they are stunning..im sure you will soon be flooded with help..everyone on here is sooo helpfull

The best suggestion - and one everyone will tell you is to sit down and plan your meals for the week...it seems a pain, but it makes life sooo much easier - especially as you have 2 little ones to see to;) ...

just a word of warning though...this place becomes addictive.:D

p-pincher

About every 6 weeks i buy the biggest wash powder,washing up liquid,cat food etc(all the boring bits) and along with a weeks shop i spend about £100-£120. Then every firday i got to Aldi/Lidl and the local market and spend about £20 on cheese, bread, veg, salad, eggs etc. I bake my own cakes and puddings(Shortbreads nice and cheap).This is for 2 adults and two little ones all week and two teenagers at the weekends.

skintchick

There's only me, and at weekends my bf, although I go to his every other weekend, and I spend around £70 a month on food, so for two I'd expect to be spending maximum £140 a month.

I cook a lot and buy reduced items and own brands at Tesco. Planning your meals is the key, and cooking in bulk so you can freeze meals saves money as well - I can make a chilli for six people (three meals for me and OH IYSWIM) for about £3.

Melissa177

I spent about 15 pounds a week on my own, although I do have the advantage of getting my washing powder/washing up liquid etc free from work... (At work my job is to buy the chemicals that go into Fairy Liquid )

skintchick

During my extremely skint period I lived on £40-50 a month for everything - food, loo roll, cat food, cleaning products and still ate well. Amazing what you can do when you have to.

DebtphobicDeirdre

Nappies will be a big expense for you, i would try starting a thread on the families forum on bringing up a baby cheaply. I'm sure they would be only too happy to help.

boo81

Dont shop too often!

I find the more I got to the supermarket the more tempted I get and each time I soend a little over and it really mounts up.

I cook all my main things about once a month and bag up to freeze. my staples are veggy curry, ratatouille and various pasta sauces. I also do casseroles, soups and anything else that takes my fancy at the time really!

Im becoming really good at forward planning and I waste very little as I can always use things up somehow! Pulses are a great way of making things stretch further and cutting down on meat has definately helped me with my budget.

Hapless_2

If there are any near you, look for farmers stores, they do big boxes pro grade fabric conditioner and washing powder, for day to day washing you only need half of what they recommend to use.

katelu

Hi there,

I did our first budgeted weekly shop this week for £65 (Have similar household situation to you) - cut from £140:j . Like the others said my biggest expense was nappies (I have decided to stick to pampers as tried cheaper brands but just used twice as much!!) and you probably have baby milk too (my youngest is past this stage) and cat food:rolleyes: ! I did the shop at 9am so got loads of bargains and stuck to old style food, so roast pork on Sun with left overs for casserole on Monday, potatoes, sausages etc. I feed both my kids what we eat so limit that expense and got as many bogof offers as possible (pasta sauce, crisps). Am pretty sure I could have done it for cheaper but pretty happy for my first attempt!!

It is possible!