What is your grocery budget for a family of 4

[sln88]

Originally posted by NotSoMini
I am almost too embarrassed by the amount that we spend to respond to this poll!

What I would like is a grocery shopping list from one of you great shoppers (less than $150 a week)!

I agree that a lot of what we eat is expensive stuff (ie, chicken breast versus sausages), but our grocery expenditures (I refuse to use the word "budget" when referring to what I spend) is totally out of control.

For two adults, two teenagers plus the occassional visiting teen - about $225 a week.

HELP MEEE!!

I don't think I spend anywhere near $300 a month in groceries- including everything. We have 2 adults, a teen and 2 boys. I can't post a shopping list because what I buy totally depends on sales and coupons. When there is a good deal, I buy alot, and then store it and we use it up, so I don't have to buy at higher prices. One of my best examples was a recent sale on Kelloggs cereal for $1.25 a box- I also had a $1 coupon, so I got it for .25 a box. I bought quite a few, but now I don't have to pay $3 for a box of cereal. If you live in a place that will double your coupons, you can do even better.

 

[punkin]

You said you eat chicken breasts. Well, you are paying for someone to cut up your meat and bone it for you and charge you extra. If you buy a whole chicken (at a MUCH lower price than boneless chicken breasts), you can get 2 breasts; breast bones and wings for a soup stock and 2 chicken leg quarters.

If you use the chicken breasts in a stir fry, you have a filling meal for a family of 5. The dark meat can be made into fricassee which over rice or potatoes will serve 4 (if you add the wings it will serve 5) and you sill can make a veggie soup for another day with your stock.

So, for a two dollar chicken (less if it's on sale) you have 3 meals.

 

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by sln88
I don't think I spend anywhere near $300 a month in groceries- including everything. We have 2 adults, a teen and 2 boys. I can't post a shopping list because what I buy totally depends on sales and coupons. When there is a good deal, I buy alot, and then store it and we use it up, so I don't have to buy at higher prices. One of my best examples was a recent sale on Kelloggs cereal for $1.25 a box- I also had a $1 coupon, so I got it for .25 a box. I bought quite a few, but now I don't have to pay $3 for a box of cereal. If you live in a place that will double your coupons, you can do even better.

Oh my gosh. I can't even imagine! We spend close to that a week with just 4 of us. I better not let DH read this or he will make me clip coupons!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Our spending is fluctuating while we tweak it so that we get the healthiest food for the best possible price.

That being said--we shop at Wild Oats (a natural food market) and Wal-Mart.

We have been on the south beach diet for over a month. So no pasta nights for us! We eat only whole grains, no added sugar, and fresh fruit and I eat chicken and hubby eats the allowable cuts of red meat (I don't eat red meat, so I don't know a ribeye from ground beef )We do frozen veggies, and try to get things in there most natural format (meaning no added anything if possible). So it makes shopping inexpensively a bit complicated--though we are trying to make it as cheap as possible. I have stopped purchasing pre-packaged lettuce and that has helped cut cost.

I do evenutally want to try making my own bread and maybe that will reduce costs.

The chicken I buy is free range and just chicken breast meat. Unfortunately it is only sold skinless and boneless--so I have no choice to purchase non-prepped chicken breast. The whole grain items such as bread--I shop for no added sugars such as corn syrup and such. Hubby settles for rye bread as it is allowed on the diet we are on--and he wouldn't care if it was processed in a salami factory--so I am searching for the cheapest version with seeds that I can find. We steer clear of additives and preservatives and dyes as much as we can which unfortunately spikes the price of food. We also only buy organic milk & yogurt (everthing else is conventional). Thank goodness, our store (Wild OatS) has one of those coupon printing machines like they have at regular grocery stores, so I am able to do coupons. At least I can save some money.

Diapers--we do an off-brand as we do wipes. We purchase these items and other items at Super Wal-mart--if it meets the above criteria, we buy it at super wal-mart--otherwise we buy it at Wild Oats. Cleaning supplies and stuff--best deal we can find at Wal-mart.

I am trying to get the spending way below $200 per week inclusive of baby necessities and household non-food items. As hubby wants the budget to remain at $800 per month. Wal-mart will be new for us--it isn't as convenient as the other local stores--but we are hoping that saving money there will balance with our other purchases.

I will know as soon as we plug in the receipts what the final tally is for the month in comparison with the month of July. If you add up all the eating out and plethora of grocery trips--we were over $1200 last month.

As of a few days ago, for this month, we were over $300 less than previous months expenditures--but I have been shopping for more groceries. I think we will definitely be less--but not that optimistacally as of yet. Trying so hard to only go ONCE per week and eating what we have! And STICK to only what is on my grocery list.

 

[jann1033]

it's funny to see the differences in prices, i never thought our food was really expensive where i live but haven' t seen a$ 2 chicken for years, sale or not!

i have read ( and it seems to be true...)if boneless chicken is more than 2 x the cost, the bone-in is a better buy...so if bone-in is $1.50 ( normal for a per lb bone-in whole chicken in my area) over &3 lb for boneless/skinless is more expensive. also the larger a "bird", the less waste per lb since the bone weight isn't that much more so you are basically paying for meat.

 

[KELLY]

Honestly I think it also depends where you live I noticed a prev poster went threw 7 to 8 gallons a milk around 2.00 each. Were I'm from it is almost 4.00 a gallon. So if all the diary prodcuts are that much diffrent than there is bound to be big diffrences. I shop what is on sale at my local shaws if I shop every week what is on sale for a family of three for abount 150.00 ds buys lunch at school but dh and I bring from home. My kitchen is always stalked really good we hardly ever run out of something.

KELLY

 

[TINK61]

Originally posted by NotSoMini
I am almost too embarrassed by the amount that we spend to respond to this poll!

What I would like is a grocery shopping list from one of you great shoppers (less than $150 a week)!

I agree that a lot of what we eat is expensive stuff (ie, chicken breast versus sausages), but our grocery expenditures (I refuse to use the word "budget" when referring to what I spend) is totally out of control.

For two adults, two teenagers plus the occassional visiting teen - about $225 a week.

HELP MEEE!!

I think your costs in Canada are higher than the U.S. So that probably equates to the $150 per week here.

 

[NotSoMini]

Yes, differences in costs (US vs Canadian) may have a lot to do with it...but I think my grocery bill is out of control...

Interestingly enough, when in Florida this past December and after a few days of staying at CBR, we stayed at two condos (one in Orlando area, one in Naples area), and bought quite a few groceries. Perhaps it was where we shopped, but I found the US prices much the same as Canadian - ie, a loaf of whole grain bread cost about $2.00 in US, and the same here...which would mean that we were paying more for it in US - the conversion rate at the time was about 35%, so the $2.00 loaf of bread in Naples equated to $2.70 Canadian (so if we lived in Orlando or Naples, my grocery bill would still cost about $225 US).

I am sure a lot of this has to do with the areas where we were shopping (?)

 

[Belle5]

It really does make a difference what area of the country you're in! I was on another message board a while back where folks posted what they paid for each grocery item. Huge difference depending on where you live! My mother was just here in Dallas for a visit and she never ceases to be horrified by our grocery prices. She is from Ohio. I think cities are categorized by whether they are Class A, B, C ,D and so on. If I remember correctly cities like NY and LA are Class A and pay more for everything. If you are offered a job in a class A city you are offered more income than your counterpart in a Class B or C city.

I would have to agree that it's been way too long since I've seen milk for $2 a gallon!!!
Oh, BTW...y'all don't really want to know my grocery bill with 3 teen sons, a twelve year old son, a 7 old son and a 1 year old son in diapers....

 

[Leota]

I am trying to keep my family of 3 (2 adults, 1 15 year old son & various teenage houseguests) in groceries for under $100.00 a week. I am keeping pretty close to that, but have an occasional slip that puts me over by a few bucks.
I am also a change & dollar bill saver, so if I have singles in my wallet, they go in the savings jar. So that $100 might actually be $90 after I take the singles out.
We might eat out once a week. I try to cook as much from scratch as possible & use mostly fresh vegetables & always fresh fruit. We don't drink soda, but are HUGE coffee drinkers & my son drinks only decaf, no sugar ice tea (that's not always cheap or easy to find!) The coffee costs are huge because we only drink Dark Roast, whole bean coffee & I make it strong.
The budget also includes 2 terriers & their biscuits & burger/rice food along with their Iams.