January 2021 Grocery Challenge

Jellybaby

First shop of the year done yesterday and spent £24.63 - first time in a very long time that I stuck to a list.  So far £24.63/£120.

Hild0

Can I join this challenge please? I'm new to grocery budgeting and have a lot to learn. My grocery spend is currently astronomical. It's just me, no pets, I'm vegetarian and I rarely drink, so you'd think I wouldn't spend that much, but I do and I need to get a grip. I don't have a car and so can't get a big shop from Lidl/Aldi so I get regular deliveries from Waitrose/Sainsburys/Tesco. I live quite near a Morrison's and do lots of small top-up shops that I can carry home, so these all add up. I buy a lot of branded products as well, like Fage Greek yoghurt, Robinson's squash, and also Nespresso capsules, which are an expensive habit that I should probably give up as I can easily go through £1 a day. I think I justify it by the fact that I don't drink or smoke, so this is my treat. I buy the odd ready meal, but not that many, and I hardly ever get take-aways. I'm a decent cook. I have been building up a Covid/Brexit extra food stash as well, so some extra spend will have gone on that. 

So, going forward, I'm going to set a target of £200 a month which might seem a lot for one person but is a lot less than I currently spend, and I'll try to come in under that. I'll start using up what I've already accumulated in my cupboards and extra stash.  I'll cut back on the Waitrose/Sainsburys/Tesco deliveries. I'm going to start shopping at Lidl as much as possible but I'll be limited to what I can carry. I could start using a rucksack for a big Lidl shop, or buy a shopping trolley.
I have a few questions. What do people who don't drive do - do you get a delivery from e.g. Asda, or just do smaller shops more often? Are there certain things that you just don't buy, e.g. fabric conditioner? Has anyone ever had a Nespresso capsule habit and given it up?

joedenise

If I had a Lidl/Aldi within walking distance I think I would invest in a shopping trolley to do a "big" shop and then with a rucksack if I needed a small top up shop.  Unfortunately because of where I live it has to be a trip with the car!  My nearest supermarket is about 8 miles away but that is a Mr T and I'm not keen but do use it for top shops.  My big shop I go to Lidl as it is far cheaper.

I only use fabric conditioner on jumpers but not on anything else.  Never had a capsule coffee machine but do have a bean to cup machine which suits me as I like a good proper coffee (black).  I don't drink a lot of it, just a couple of small cups most days (probably the equivalent of a teacup rather than a mug!  It's not particularly cheap but think probably better value.  If you're happy with your capsule machine then perhaps you could try to cut down the amount you use it rather than giving it up altogether.  It would then still be your treat.

cw18

Hild0 said:

I have a few questions. What do people who don't drive do - do you get a delivery from e.g. Asda, or just do smaller shops more often? Are there certain things that you just don't buy, e.g. fabric conditioner? Has anyone ever had a Nespresso capsule habit and given it up?

I'm lucky that I have an Aldi at the other end of my small town (a half mile from home, and where I pick up loo rolls which are my bulkiest purchase), which I walk past on my way home from work (key worker) having already passed a small Iceland.    My office is also directly opposite a small (but not Metro small, and normally has the fabric conditioner I like - though at around one 1litre bottle a year it's not a major purchase for me) Tesco, and it's not a huuuge detour to get to a small Asda (though I rarely do this).

When I need bits from a larger supermarket that I can't get locally, then I put on my 55 litre backpack and walk.   The most direct route to a Tesco Extra (and Lidl) is a 5.5 mile round trip - with the return being mostly uphill!   Or I can do a round trip of around 7 miles in the opposite direction to a different Tesco Extra (plus Poundstretcher, Poundland, Food Warehouse and Home Bargains) which is more downhill coming home - I tend to opt for this one.    In good weather I can do Asda, Sainsbury, Food Warehouse and a large Aldi with a 7.25 mile roundtrip, but with the mud as it is at the moment that circuit is currently 7.5.   Extending it by less than a quarter mile means I can also do the Tesco Extra and Lidl which would be the 5.5 on their own.   I do any of these any day that I'm off work - even on a Sunday when I drag my partner with me (we don't live together).

An 11 mile roundtrip (in a different direction) gets to to a Sainsbury, Morrisons - plus all the other shops you  normally find in a busy (and good sized) town centre.   Fortunately most of the uphill on this one is heading to the shops, so I'm mostly downhill once I'm loaded up     I only do this one when I'm on a week off work.

I've also been known to walk 10.5 miles into the closest city centre.   A couple of times I've also walked home, but I generally get the bus back.

I can't justify spending £40 in one hit to get a supermarket delivery (a very big shop for me in any one store is under £20), and I certainly can't justfy paying for delivery.

bett_rhy

Hi , could I join again please? 
It's been a while and I need to try and stop over spending 😂
Can we be put for £160 a month for 2 people?
X-x-X

Finstickle

Hild0 said:

Can I join this challenge please? I'm new to grocery budgeting and have a lot to learn. My grocery spend is currently astronomical. It's just me, no pets, I'm vegetarian and I rarely drink, so you'd think I wouldn't spend that much, but I do and I need to get a grip. I don't have a car and so can't get a big shop from Lidl/Aldi so I get regular deliveries from Waitrose/Sainsburys/Tesco. I live quite near a Morrison's and do lots of small top-up shops that I can carry home, so these all add up. I buy a lot of branded products as well, like Fage Greek yoghurt, Robinson's squash, and also Nespresso capsules, which are an expensive habit that I should probably give up as I can easily go through £1 a day. I think I justify it by the fact that I don't drink or smoke, so this is my treat. I buy the odd ready meal, but not that many, and I hardly ever get take-aways. I'm a decent cook. I have been building up a Covid/Brexit extra food stash as well, so some extra spend will have gone on that. 

So, going forward, I'm going to set a target of £200 a month which might seem a lot for one person but is a lot less than I currently spend, and I'll try to come in under that. I'll start using up what I've already accumulated in my cupboards and extra stash.  I'll cut back on the Waitrose/Sainsburys/Tesco deliveries. I'm going to start shopping at Lidl as much as possible but I'll be limited to what I can carry. I could start using a rucksack for a big Lidl shop, or buy a shopping trolley.
I have a few questions. What do people who don't drive do - do you get a delivery from e.g. Asda, or just do smaller shops more often? Are there certain things that you just don't buy, e.g. fabric conditioner? Has anyone ever had a Nespresso capsule habit and given it up?

Have you thought of getting a taxi home from the supermarket every now and then? I know it might seem extravagant but it would mean you could do a full stock up on heavy items and leave yourself with the lighter more regular items to carry.
Like others I have in the past used a big rucksack and walked which has worked, but I was only a couple of miles so depends what works for you. 

leftatthetrafficlights

£40.98/ £70 today - first spend of the month and should do us for the week hopefully 😊

joedenise

Have had a couple of spends and now stand at £178.85 left for the rest of the month.  Has been quite spendy so far but we have most of what we need for the month although will still be needing bread, milk, eggs etc but do have most meat, apart from sausages but the butcher hadn't made any of the low fat sausages that I like so no spend there until later in the week, probably go back on Thursday as he expects to make them late Tuesday or some time Wednesday.  I normally buy 2-3 dozen at a time as we like them at the weekend for breakfast plus the occasional sausage sandwich!  Will need to change lunch planned for tomorrow as it was going to be sausage & onion sandwich!

Miss_Behaving

I have just taken delivery of this month's dog food so I'm declaring my first grocery spend of £59.81. 

My husband did question why only the human members of the household seem to be tightening their belts this January... the collies are still dining on salmon chunks, lamb, beef and turkey!!

Florenceem

Spend of £3.50 today. Branston Baked Beans are on offer at Asda - pack of 4 for £1.50