How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

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entrus
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How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by entrus »

It would be interesting and informative if members could share their experiences on how much they spend weekly on household shopping, groceries etc., and also share their tips on how they keep the costs down.

Come on you pennypinchers, share your secrets!

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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by Totally Scrambled »

For four of us, including two teenagers with hollow legs, we spend about £100 a week. Sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less depending on whether the big things all run out at once.
If there is something on offer that I was going to get anyway or will keep I will buy it, otherwise I'm selective of which offers they try to seduce me with.
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ChrisG
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by ChrisG »

On average we spend about £30 per week. That covers cleaning stuff as well, such as soap powder, toothpaste etc. I usually get my veggies from A1di (will be growing my own this year, so that will save some), I get my meat from wherever is cheap - usually get the stuff reduced as near its sellby date and then freeze it. I buy it whether we actually need it that week or not, if there is a good deal on offer (eg we bought a second turkey crown on Christmas eve because they were knocked down to one third of their original price - it's in the freezer). I get my tinned stuff (chopped toms, tuna and sweetcorn) from wherever is cheapest (I am fortunate in that I have all four of the big supermarkets very close to me, even though I live in the sticks). Bread I get from M'sons or bake my own.

We rarely buy processed cereals - I eat muesli (my own recipe) and he eats either cereals that are on offer, cereals from A1ldi (taste good enough) or porridge.

Each week I do the fresh stuff shopping - perishables and anything I have run out of (rare). Then once a month, I do a 'big' shop and get staples like rice and pasta and the tinned stuff. So I often spend between £10 and £15 each week, then the rest goes on the monthly shop, which averages altogether around £30 a week.

As for making the groceries go further, we use very little meat per meal and pad it out with veggies and beans/pulses. An 800g pack of mince can last for around 6 days for the two of us. What we dont eat, we freeze for another time, but usually we just eat the same thing for several days. Mince, I would divide up into quarters, make a different meal with each quarter and some of those (eg if I make a mince and onion pie with pastry topping) will last two days.

Last year OH had a health MOT courtesy of his place of work - his cholesterol was 2.9, blood pressure normal, blood sugar normal (cant remember the exact figures), so clearly our way of eating works.

I have one online friernd that feeds her family of three (her, partner and grown up son) for £1 per person per day! Can put you in touch if you want.
Chris xx

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HedgeHugger
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by HedgeHugger »

We buy in bulk if something is on offer. When our 'usual' brand of coffee was on a bogof offer we had over 40 jars stored on top of the freezer.
I have butter in my freezer still from when T*sco was running a buy 1 get 2 free offer @ the end of 2010!!
I can remember a trrip to Waitr*se where all we bought was coffee and laundry liquid, it looked like we were running a cafe in a laundrette!! :)
If food is perishable, we only buy what we will eat. We used to be terribly wasteful and would end up throwing away a lot of food. These days It is rare for us to need to throw out any foodstuffs.

We go where the offers are, no loyalty to a supermarket. Totally mercenary in that respect :)
It is a little harder these days as my nearest Asd* is over 10 miles away, as is Morris*ns.

On a regular week we spend around £30, but if there is something we could bulk buy to our advantage.....It comes down to how much we use, how much we can carry and if we can store it or not :)
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HappyBob
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by HappyBob »

Our weekly spend is £40 and this is for food and toiletries including wash powder.
The Mrs does one big shop every 4 weeks, but will buy bread and milk as and when needed. We hardly spend anything on Veg as we are more or less self sufficient, we tend to eat what is in season and have a well stocked freezer with surplus grown from summer.

We eat meat most days except fri, when we have fish, chips and mushy peas. I also always have rabbits which we eat and I have been known to barter the surplus, for eggs and fish now and again. Breakfast is mainly porridge and toast (in summer she tends to get up very early and enjoys baking bread and oven bottom cakes most mornings), although we have a home cooked full monty on wednesdays after we,ve been to the local market.

My Mrs is a great cook/baker and very frugal to boot. And I can honestly say that We are eating miles better in the last two years then at any time I can remember. We eat a lot of pasta now which i really enjoy espeicially if the Mrs has made it home made, and rice, again which I enjoy.
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by Benny&Co »

Fab tips there, thanks folks )t'

I know I can get our shopping budget down, at the moment we probably spend about £60 a week or so in Sasda and then about £60 every two weeks at our butcher where get our meat. Also get our bread at the farm shop and perhaps some fruit/veggies for about £10 or so.

Our local Aldeeee has closed down sadly because I loved there things and I've tried Leedle but still end up going to other places for the things that we like.

We have a Mogginsons but don't use that often at all. We also have two big Tessandco's but find them too gimmickey.

There used to be a Netototo but that's now a Sainsbugs local??

For us Sasda's seems to have good honest prices for the things we like to get.

:-D
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by mrs boodles »

I can`t say how much we spend but know it`s been way too much. We have just started couponing and that has saved a bit over past couple of weeks and with other stuff in freezer and cupboards we are going to try and live off bits in there apart from milk and maybe veg and fruit. Am hopefully going to do some veggie gardening this year but most will have to be in containers as only little bit of pocket garden. Also more baking and bread making, will have to be a lot more frugal as will probably be packing up work through ill health and my contributions to housekeeping etc is going to be severely curtailed. +pinn+
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by Mrs B »

I tend to spend between £40 and £60 at the supermarket but that does include clothes and household items such as a new saucepan when it is the top end of the scale.
I tend to go to Al-di for the big tinned goods and cereals and such once a month but that is included in the above amount. Every couple of weeks I use the indoor market for cooked meats, sausage and cheese this can be anything between £3 and £12 depending what I need.
The weekly shop is usually Sasda purely because it is in town centre so I can pop to the bank and other shops plus it is a pay on exit car park and get 2 hours free parking when at supermarket so no fiddling about with change for the meter. I like Sonofmorri but it is out of town so seems to take an age to get there as have to battle through the town centre traffic to get there.

Within 5 miles I have Al-di, Li-dl, Sasda, Sanberries and Sonofmorri so I am spoilt for choice.
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Spreckly
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by Spreckly »

This is my third reply to the post. Don't know what is happening to them, but they are getting lost. We spend between £30 and £35 for two of us. No more details, sick of typing the same stuff!
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by LittleBrownFrog »

There are six of us, and we spend about £100 a week :-D
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Spreckly
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by Spreckly »

Today I spent £26 in A....di, mainly basics. Next week we will use Mr T's new shop which opens locally on Monday - going for a nose round, and A.... di as well. I buy loo rolls from F.rm Fo.ds, a lot of the people you see at the tills have bought just them, nothing else!
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kate egg
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by kate egg »

Too much usually! Been cutting back since the beginning of the year, living out the freezers, I even made chilli con carne from some frozen lamb mince that I had bought to cook for the dog! (Not dog food you understand, human food from son of Morris) It was a bit fatty but I drained most of it off, added onion, peppers, tin toms, kidney beans, stock and spices - it made 4 generous portions and I am not barking (yet) :-D

If I take the alcohol purchases out I would guess about £100 on a normal week for 4 or 5 or 6 or 7 adults depending who is in :?
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by redoak »

I usually spend about £20 but it varies. Sometimes includes a bottle of wine, and I don't often buy meat as I can't afford it. I have a friend come over sometimes who likes a meat meal and I'm always horrified at how much it costs. One meal will then take nearly half my usual weekly food spend yike* - or more if I get wine too!!
Have just been given 3 rabbits by the guys that were ferreting on Sunday so will have to see what I can do with them :-D
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Lillia
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by Lillia »

For the 2 of us, £30, and that does include everything; household, personal, clothing, garden....I can say we lack nothing~
We do only have beef when we are lucky enough to find steaks marked down at night to 20p. I buy fish the same; marked down to an unbelievable price. I've bought milk for 3p but I will only use that for baking, usually~
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Re: How much do you spend on weekly groceries?

Post by paddy graham »

Reading your answers there must be somthing wrong with me.70 to 80 euro is my bill.I do eat well,meat every day, fresh veg(hate frozen),fish,but I dont drink coffee,only tea,only eat duck eggs,maybe some weeks I buy a four pack )hic( not spirits),washing and cleaning stuff,mainly brand names,I do run a car but dont go mad with it.
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