June 2017 Grocery Challenge

Doom_and_Gloom

Kittencat wrote: »

Good morning lovely people xx

Quick question if I may?

Do you count the odd bottle of wine/beer in with your groceries

Xx

Spirits for us is a different budget. I buy beer out of my personal funds as the OH doesn't drink it at all so that wouldn't be fair to add to either budget in my opinion. The odd bottle of wine may get added to food spend though as we buy on offer for £5 at most a bottle and we rarely drink more than a bottle a month.

Cleaning items, toiletries etc are also different budgets. We buy vegan eco friendly cleaning products/hand wash/laundry detergent etc and I buy vegan toiletries and the like so it would make the grocery budget look larger by quite a bit despite only really buying when on offer (bulk buy when on offer and can't easily plan for when that would be, so year budgets for those).

amandaatnumber7

Suffolk_lass wrote: »

I realise it's different in Aus but I also only buy my toiletries, cleaning products and store-cupboard things when they are on offer. I only buy one if I have run out and no offers but if they are on offer I buy several (how many, depends on my store-cupboard budget at that point). I have not paid full price for shower stuff, laundry detergent or tins of food for two years plus now. I got my budget together by "banking" the savings I made when I shopped the offers.

I also do this, I try and wait for when they're half price

[Deleted User]

Kittenkat I have a separate fund of £20 per month (at the moment), for alcohol bought to drink at home. If I was to go out, that would come out of the entertainment budget.

Elsie - that's very sad about your families loss. Wishing you all well.

Went to market just before closing and got a ton for £6. Fruit gets washed, frozen and bagged, for smoothies, ice cream etc. and the broccoli is now soup. I got;

Hugh bowl of blueberrries (the one they normally have tomatoes in)
8 punnets of raspberries
3 large broccoli
10 advocado
4kg onions
Sweet potato

Just want a few more bits n I'm done for the week. Have updated sig.

K9sandFelines

Still to add up my April total yet, but count me in again this month. Annual figure of £4,000, so approximately £333.33 for the month; to cover bulk buys aswell as any delivery saver payments.

Thanks to all for contributing and running the thread, i haven't been very active lately as life is just too busy.

claireyfairy82

First shop in at £90.93.

I wrote a months plan of meals based on my groaning freezers and stocked up on all the dried/tinned stuff for the month. Fingers crossed I'll be within budget this month; the rest of my budget is for fresh stuff and the cereal that my children still make disappear at an alarming rate.

Hopefully if there is anything left over I can add it to my holiday spending money.

armchairexpert

Half price cleaning products here too, unless I buy them from Aldi which is significantly cheaper anyway. Or Costco on occasion.

I'm trying a different tactic this month and trying to think monthly rather than weekly for the meal planning. To that end, I just went to the butcher and bought a range of things to plan around, rather than the other way around. I was disappointed, though: I was hoping for some good bulk discounts (mince is often cheaper if bought in 2 kg lots, for example) but the butcher told me they're having trouble keeping up with demand in the wintry weather, so no discounts for me! Supermarket meat is something I'm not willing to compromise on.

Anyway $71 later I have:

2kg basic beef sausages - 3-4 meals
A 2kg roasting chicken - 2 meals plus it'll stretch to some lunchtime sandwiches or a bit of soup
2kg marinated pork chops - 3 meals
1.4kg lamb chops - 2 meals
1 kg beef mince - 2 meals

The sausages'll probably get used up for weekend lunches and things rather than proper dinners, if I know my family (Australians seem to have super high standards for what counts as a proper meal!) but I should be able to make all that last for 3 weeks' worth of weekday meals and then Mr Expert can be a bit more extravagant on the weekends when he cooks.

I'm determined not to break into that stash until my official shopping week begins tomorrow (Sat), though, so tonight is leftover HM baked beans (delish! Slow cooker with a ham hock highly recommend), cheese omelette and chips.

elsiepac

Thanks Save Dosh.

Re alcohol in the budget, I have a separate budget. Cleaning and toiletries except for make up come from grocery budget. But make up comes from entertainment as "non-essential". Technically it is an essential for me, I only wear a little Day to day, but I wouldn't go out without it (except to pop to shop or something, but I don't like it!) but as I suppose I could survive without it I don't take it from grocery.

t14cy_t

did a huge ys shop and clearance xl and spent £71 in total, so £9 left for the rest of the month!!! whoops. on the plus side we are very well stocked for the month! xx

pamsdish

Small spend yesterday as needed creme freche and some more on offer rhubarb for freezer. £8.50
I thought everyone stocked up on cleaning products and other household goods when on offer, says the women with 15 bottles of ariel washing liquid, in fairness I do give some to my daughter and daughter in law in their goody bags I make for them, I also have 5 of the oven cleaners from the £ shop, I like the 25% extra packs as I have enough then for my double oven too.

spendaholic

First shop of the month came in at just over £71. I stripped out the magazines and bought those with some printer paper - I can put both through my books (magazines come under market study/research/portfolio) so could do with the separate receipt anyway. Pleased with that on a £75 per week budget.