October 2022 Grocery Challenge

Doom_and_Gloom

LadyWithAPlan said:

Apparently almond milk is really not good for the environment so going to cut down to max 2  a week.

While almond milk certainly is rather bad for the environment, certainly the 80(ish)% grown in California monocultures (which is a different topic altogether), it has much less of an overall impact than even UK cow milk. I have to admit I rarely buy almond milk anymore and it is usually when it is reduced now that I do so.
If you are able maybe switch to a different plant milk that is enriched if you don't want to make your own to cover yourself.
Soya and oat are a good option if you can. I sometimes buy Mighty M.lk, when it is on offer, which is pea protein and enriched.
If you can get the barista version on offer it is better for coffee from what I have heard.

Edit - Though I mention enriched DF milks, if you are exclusively using them for caffeinated coffee then it isn't as important as that reduces the biodiverse ability of most of the minerals and vitamins anyway.

Smoosh

We ended the month on £250/£230. I think I'm going to take the excess out of November's budget and see how we go.

EssexHebridean

Hello all - some good results here as people are declaring their months I see - well done!

We still have another week to go, but this week's shopping done on the way home from our weekend away yesterday was £27.02 spent in Lil's - that brings ups to a total so far of £155.60/£200 so £44.40 remaining. £16 of this will be the veg box but it looks like a decent one this week, and frankly allowing that I already have a meal plan all done for this week AND most of next that should be enough to cover us. Annoyingly MrEH dropped one of the bags while trying to juggle other stuff as we got to the front door last night - of course it would be the one with the (4pt bottle) milk in it...we were delighted to find that although a bit battered, that had survived - the yogurts weren't so lucky though and three (out of four)  of those had to go to the bin. One of those situations which could have been avoided with a little more patience, but we've all been guilty of that sort of thing in the past haven't we - and it could have been a heap worse if the milk had burst!

I wasn't able to get block cheddar cheese or halloumi but those were due to a fault with the cheese fridge by the look of it rather than supply issues - the cheeses I did get were from the promotional fridge with all the continental goods in. (An aged gouda, an Irish camembert style one and a piece of Morbier which is a favourite of ours - all at good prices) The missed items will stay on the list for next week, and I can start building next week's list now too from the notes on the meal plan.

It's definitely starting to feel as though things are getting tighter on the grocery spends front now. Although I didn't notice too many more increases this week, the effect month on month is beginning to be very noticeable and I can see us needing to tweak our budget up again in the new year. For us it's fine, but I do feel from others who genuinely only have a similar budget to ours or even smaller to spend without wiggle room from elsewhere to bolster it when needed. 

mumtoomany

Hi all. Had to go int town to collect DD3, who's down for a few days. She'd been out with a friend and stayed over. Called into the shops, morrisons had reduced cottage cheese, so 60p for two. Tesco for eggs and beer. £17.33 and farmfoods to take advantage of staff discount, £16.72. Total for these is £34.65. Spend for the year to date is now £2497.27/£2640. Getting tighter by the day! Shouldn't need to set foot in a shop for several days. Hugs, mumtoomany.xxx

joedenise

Final spend of the month of £20.09.  Have spent £181.98/£250 - really pleased to have come in under budget again this month.  The leftover money will be transferred to the spends pot for our holiday next month.

Caroby

Spent £6.13 in Morrison's today on a few bits to tide us over til the end of the week, when we'll do our first November shop.
Declaring at £169.76 / £180 so pleased to have stayed under budget.

JingsMyBucket

Hi y'all. Checking in for the end of the month. We were doing so well and had our last spend last Sunday and were already ≈ £11 over.... then OH went to M & S today to fill a craving for biscuits and other random things and spent £20.00 🙄. He spent a bunch of that on candy that kids never came around to get. I told him kids wouldn't come around but hey, whatever. Anyways, we're ending the month at £331.18 / £300.00. We were so close!! 

diminua

Declaring at £5.33 over. I'm starting to really notice prices going up now - no longer is it a vague 'I'm pretty sure that was cheaper' but I know it was, and that it's jumped a second time. 

cinnamon123

Last shop of the month occurred last week Friday and was $100.16 bringing the Oct GC total to $445.36/$550 (grocery budget-food only) + $20.13/$100 (stock-up budget). Under budget but only because we didn't get to a more expensive store and took advantage of some good offers. Didn't really stock up this month but I think we are good for a bit. Now off to sign up for November!

ancientmum

It's close to the wire this month with £829.36/830 for the year so far.  
I had to get my covid booster at a pharmacy that is near an Iceland, so took advantage of it being Tuesday to get three packs of fish for £9 instead of £10.  The till assistant was asking anyone looking vaguely older if they were over 60. (I am).  No i.d. required.