October 2021 Grocery Challenge

Suffolk_lass

@weenancyinAmerica the people using food banks don't need a phone. The food that the SM offer via their app is food that the food bank have not taken (sometimes their clients have no cooking facilities so raw food cannot be used) - so rather than send it to waste they offer it free or at minimal cost to their customers who are registered for the app. I use a desktop computer (c2012) rather than a phone app and if I logged in, I could access it that way too

joedenise

Went shopping yesterday and have spent just over £37 so far and now have £211.46 left for the rest of the month.  Need to go to Lidl sometime this month as want some more washing liquid from there as only got half a bottle left.

Mrs_Cheshire

small spend of £7 yesterday at the community grocery - well worth it. We also received a package from the kids' school - they had done a harvest collection for the food bank and for any families that get free school meals. Loads of cupboard basics as well as some treats for the kids, as well as some fresh bits. 
Should only need bread & milk later in the week. 

jozbo

Had to cancel A$da delivery due to high number of out of stock items. Went in person this eve and found everything I needed, spend £18.87 leaving £158 for the month. Bit confused about my veg box DD as it seemed not to go out on usual date so I’m waiting for that to come and bite me on the bum.

scotmumof3

£8.35 spend at T3sco this week. 

weenancyinAmerica

Thank you for your responses to my comment about the cost of phones. We can get free phones in this state if we are on welfare - but only one per household. One of the people I live with has that - and I wouldn't want him to lose it by applying for one myself. My roommates have a plan that is supposed to be very reasonable but it cost $50 each a month (£37 each). Sounds better there.

Money_Choices

Hi
Please put me down for £85 food only spend this month, thanks Elsiepac for organising this thread.
Yesterday 4 Oct I spent at Mr T*S £24.67.

Money Choices

Doom_and_Gloom

weenancyinAmerica said:

Thank you for your responses to my comment about the cost of phones. We can get free phones in this state if we are on welfare - but only one per household. One of the people I live with has that - and I wouldn't want him to lose it by applying for one myself. My roommates have a plan that is supposed to be very reasonable but it cost $50 each a month (£37 each). Sounds better there.

We pay for our mobile handset upfront. If I had to buy a new one I wouldn't want to pay more than £200 for it (I've had my current one for over 3 years and it still works and charges fine. I intend on using it until it gives up), but my OH usually buys a more up to date phone than me so around the £300 zone and I think his plan is £24 ish per month (his overall mobile costs is around £32 a month by my estimation.)
My monthly SIM only plan is £14.20 a month (was £14 but slight price increase) and has a year left on the 2 year plan I got - 12GB internet (go binge is on my plan so it doesn't eat into my internet usage for certain things such as Netflix), unlimited talk minutes and unlimited texts.
So my overall mobile costs around the £20 mark a month when averaged out. Not bad but could be better. As they've removed go binge from new/upgrade plans when I look into a new SIM plan next year I will likely get a lower internet plan and save money as not working now so mostly use home internet.

Contract phones (handset with SIM) usually have a upfront cost of at least £19 and depend on the phone for monthly costs but seem to start around £21 (for 4GB internet at least) on a 2 year plan!

Mobile/cellphone plans in America do seem to be rather pricey compared to ours though.

Doom_and_Gloom

carolinerunner said:

@Doom_and_Gloom ty for the info about veg boxes. I can see the many benefits! What is O box?

Oddbox. They deliver at the moment in London (though we are on the edge of their delivery I believe as some say London for us and others call it Kent, roll eyes here), the South and Midlands. Though I believe they have expanded to the Greater Manchester area.
A&C to my knowledge deliver to most of the UK.
Do look into a local fruit and veg scheme though. That was how I got into them 14 years ago, but unfortunately I moved out of their delivery area and moved onto A&C a while after.

The thing I find with having a fruit and vegetable box is that if the OH goes out to shop a day or two before one is due I look at what there is and am less likely to ask him to get x, y or z unless it is heavily reduced and can be easily incorporated into the plan and/or frozen. That saves us money as well as waste in the end. 

goldfinches

weenancyinAmerica said:

Thank you for your responses to my comment about the cost of phones. We can get free phones in this state if we are on welfare - but only one per household. One of the people I live with has that - and I wouldn't want him to lose it by applying for one myself. My roommates have a plan that is supposed to be very reasonable but it cost $50 each a month (£37 each). Sounds better there.

@weenancyinAmerica - I have noticed that this site Ask a Manager has a very helpful, well informed commentariat who give one another reliable advice. It is based in the USA so you may find it useful to ask about phones and charge plans there.

My first supermarket spend of this month was at M*rks this morning on 2 mangos, 2 bread rolls, frozen green beans and radishes which came to £3.75. I also spent £1 on a SimplyCook trial box in an effort to give my sagging mojo some inspiration.
That makes my new total £4.75/£124  and my average daily spend £0.95.

I'm planning to spend tomorrow morning doing a fridge clearout and making either a slow cooker soup, curry or a chilli with the results depending what there actually is lurking in there so tomorrow's meal plan is
Breakfast - f/f greek style yoghurt and last of the stewed apple from the fridge
Lunch -  wrap from freezer with fridge clearout salad veg plus cheese and an egg of some sort, probably poached, radishes and mango half
Dinner - slow cooker soup/curry/chilli with cous cous and frozen petits pois, sweetcorn and green beans followed by either a tangerine, a banana or some mango and a coffee.