What do you spend on food for a week?

[BettyR]

I have been trying to cut my budget down as much as possible so we can put more money back into savings. We have everything paid down now…no car notes…no credit cards…we have a house payment but the rent we get on our old house (it’s paid for) makes the house payment on this house plus $50.00.

The only luxuries we have are DirecTV and our cell phones…I’m not giving those up unless it’s absolutely necessary. So my next project is to try and carve as much waist and excess off my food bill as possible. I’m spending between $100.00 and $200.00 a week to feed 3 people; I’d like to carve it down too closer to $100.00 than $200.00. That also includes paper products, personal grooming products, cleaning products and so on.

I know you all are some pretty thrifty people so I was wondering if you could share some of the ways you cut your food budget?

 

[debilorrah]

We spend between $150-$250 per week for a family of 5. I rely on cost consious recipes, meat on sale, etc. I shop the sales too. We go to Target for paper products, personal products, cereal (WAY cheaper) and prescriptions (they have the $4 program there) And when it comes right down to it, our best friend is a big huge bag of pancake mix. When all else fails, pancakes will fill ya up good.

 

[lockedhearts]

This isn't necessarily cutting off my food bill, but I do try to cook enough at night so hubby and I can take lunch to work the next day. This saves a lot on our lunch budget.
I am pretty much watching prices, and really planning what I am cooking, I find with a menu and exact list plus anything I am out of, really stops "impulse" buys. I try to buy meat when it's on sale and buy extra to freeze.

 

[ChickenToes]

For myself and my husband, I think we spend around $60 a week. Maybe less.

We have a garden and I did a lot of canning this summer, which cut down on the food bill quite a bit because now I don't have to buy some of the things we use most often - onions, jams and jellies, and diced tomatoes.

I make soap and laundry detergent, so there are 2 more things I don't have to buy.

We like to buy large cuts of meat or large packages of meat - like a beef brisket instead of a small roast or the large package of ground beef instead of the small one. It costs less per pound, and we can get a lot more meals out of it.

 

[jbowyer01]

I just spent 187$ for two weeks for three to four people (depends if my daughter asks to visit from college lol). I first go through my cabinets and freezer and take note of what I have. I then get out my calander and write down a dinner meal for every day for 2 weeks. I make my shopping list as I write down each meal so that I know I have the ingredients. I then add extras like breakfast/lunch and personal items. (I always try to plan a little extra with dinner so that I can take it for lunch)I go through my coupons and figure out things such as will it be cheaper to buy a bag of potatos or cheaper to buy instant potatos. I also try to allot enough money in my budget for extra sale items so I can stock up a little. When I go to the grocery store I take my calender, my shopping list and coupons, because you might find a better buy on something that you can switch the meal for ie..chicken leg quarters instead of chicken breast. I also save all the ends of my vegetables when I cut them up. I put them in the freezer and at the end of the two weeks I make some kind of soup and either homemade bread or biscuits. I also save all my uneaten bbq meat and put them it in a bag in the freezer and make something southerns call brunswick stew and cornbread. I also use something called angel food ministries, it is not a charity. They buy items at better and bulk prices and are able to pass the prices onto individuals. Here is the website: www.angelfoodministries.com

 

[jnjross]

500 per month 3 people 2cats 22chickens

 

[DawnSuiter]

Family of 3 plus 4 dogs & 2 cats and we spend about $300 per month on food for all of us.
The dogs & cats eat about $50 per month of that budget
That's approximately $8 per day in foodstuffs & misc items... which for me is quite a lot.

Buy bulk packs of meat and split for future use
I'm hispanic and rice is my BEST FRIEND and goes with almost every meal
Since meat is the most expensive of any meal, I server two or three veggies with meals & very little meat when we're trying to stretch our pennies.

SUPER CHEAP-
Can of bean w/bacon soup over white rice
Can of baked beans with hot dogs
Fried eggs over white rice

As far as paper products & misc non food items, I simply stopped buying all of them aside of toilet paper. No more paper towels or napkins.. instead I bought several bulk packs of white washcloths. Saved a FORTUNE with that I assure you.

Breakfast is always boxed cereals (we keep several types on hand) and on weekends pop tarts for the kid. DH & I don't eat much other than dinner & a late night bowl of cereal... DD eats a sandwich every day, with raw veg & fruit & juice for lunch. We eat lots of fiber to help keep us healthy & full longer.

We do ok. We don't eat junk food or anything really.. some popcorn, some ice cream here and there. I find it important to teach my kid that food is only for fuel for our bodies and nothing else.

Next year I hope to bring that bill down even further

 

[SterlingAcres]

I spend $50-70 per week to feed a family of 4. We have pasta every other night (different sauces to mix it up).
With my inlaws (additional 4 people) staying here for a few months, we're going threw $300 every two weeks. I cannot believe the amount of waste and luxury... 'Poor' people do not eat tacos (3lbs of meat each meal) and all the fixings 3 nights a week... Seriously. I want to tear my hair out...

 

[eastTNchick]

I usually spend right at $100/week for a family of 5. This also includes all HBA, (very, very few) paper products (mainly TP), and cat food & litter. This does not include chicken feed, rabbit food, shavings, etc.

We use very few napkins/paper towels, and hardly ever use paper/styrofoam/plastic plates or cups. I do keep disposable spoons & forks on hand for lunches. I bake almost all of our breads, and cook everything that I can from scratch. I buy very few convienence items. Milk is a big expense for us because we can easily go through 4 to 6 gallons/week.

Now that I am canning more of my own produce & broth, I'm hoping to cut my grocery bill even more.

 

[wendy]

There are 6 of us, 2 adults 4 children ranging from 13 - 2 y/o.

I shop at sam's for some things. You have to watch what you get there. I can spend $80-120 a month there. ( $ 120 if hubby comes along!)

grocery store - I spend about $200 a month. i buy generic on alot of things. look towards the bottom shelves for the better prices. we sell our eggs to pay for chicken feed. we eat eggs almost every morning. i use a recipe for homemade biscuits, homemade pancakes, homemade cookies, i buy fruit for snacks, dried beans, tuna in the can, vienna sausages, (we do not buy coke, sprite, etc) we drink, juice, coffee, tea, milk, cool aid, gatorade and water. i buy pasta and make a "goolosh". i make my own spaghetti sauce. i save over ripe bannnas and make bannana nut bread. i make birthday cakes instead of buying them and decorate myself. i make soups and we have leftovers for anything that i can reuse and then the rest goes to the chickens and ducks to help with there food bill. hubby hunts so we have deer meat for half the year! so that cuts out on meat cost. when i do buy meat we buy chicken. i cook pork chops about every 6 months and steak about every 6 months. we try to stay away from red meat to often. i buy and cook some about every 2 months. i use as much chicken recipes as i can and seafood. i buy what is on sale or clearenced (check the date of course).

i buy paper towels at the dollar store and toilet paper. dishwashing detergent and washing powder there usually too. Also, deodrant, soap, toothpaste, hair products there too. i try to stay away from walmart. for one they hurt the little guys and another some how i never come out of there without going over what i plan on spending in there! lol!



edited to say: i tried the homemade detergent for washing powder and dishwasher. I did not see it cleaned as good, so i felt like that was a waste of money and time.)

wendy