Here is a picture of the groceries I bought for $59.54 and this will easily feed my family of 4 for a week. Why? I cook, I'm creative with meals, I don't waste food. And there is ALWAYS something on special or marked down for fast sale.
What's in there?
-1 Big Flank Steak (to be used sliced thinly for BBQ steak sandwiches)
-1 Big Box frozen fish sticks (for kids meals, fish sandwiches, etc.)
-Package of turkey breakfast sausage
-fresh fruit: apples, bananas
-fresh vegetables: lettuce, carrots
-3 doz corn tortillas
-Cans and cans of hearty soup (8!)
-Cans and cans of Ravioli (4!)
-Cans and cans of fruit (3!)
-Boxes of pasta side dishes
-2 gallons of milk
-Bags and bags of frozen veges (3!)
-5 lb of whole wheat flour
-box of cereal
-Big bag of chips
-cream cheese
-Bag of cat food
and the 5 cups of yogurt aren't even showing.
So what's for lunch/dinner? with a few afterschool snacks thrown in:
BBQ steak sandwiches and french fries
Fish sticks and frozen corn and can fruit
Pasta side dish with tuna and salad
Ravioli and salad
Soup & salad
Smoothies (yogurt, banana)
Fish sandwiches with can fruit and salad
Quesidillas (I already have cheese) w/chips
Turkey sausage on pasta
and my cat gets to join in.
Gripe #2-Groceries prices are NOT skyrocketing
May 3rd, 2008 at 02:37 pm
May 3rd, 2008 at 03:18 pm 1209827919
For example, we buy canned milk to keep on hand for occasional use. Normally we buy it at Aldi's, the least expensive place around. Last time we bought it, it was $0.69, up from $0.63. That may not sound huge to you, but it is a 9.5% increase. And we are seeing similar increases on many foods.
May 3rd, 2008 at 06:06 pm 1209838002
May 3rd, 2008 at 06:40 pm 1209840019
And yet I do see how following sales could keep the overall cost down...but I only approve (health wise) the one brand of bread..so I am a bit stuck.
That and 2 gallons of milk wouldn't keep DH happy for a week much less the rest of us
And where did you get all the lettuce for the salads? I seem to recall my husband saying that was going up in price, but I haven't checked lately (I go play with the kids, he pays and loads up the car)
May 3rd, 2008 at 07:39 pm 1209843567
As far as milk - we are a gallon a day for a family of seven. I have found that Walmart and Aldis still have the cheapest milk and producearound.
May 3rd, 2008 at 07:51 pm 1209844274
May 3rd, 2008 at 09:18 pm 1209849489
- eggs are up
I do not buy full price store bread. It's either the day old store or the day old rack or my bread machine or full blown home made.
Lettuce = $1 head this week (and last week)
Spinach = we grow in the backyard
The handwringing over high grocery prices is what's kinda bothering me. Coupons, shop the specials, make homemade and all the age old tips result in a modest increase, not the news media sensational garbage I'm hearing.
May 3rd, 2008 at 09:31 pm 1209850286
May 3rd, 2008 at 11:13 pm 1209856390
May 4th, 2008 at 12:27 am 1209860835
May 4th, 2008 at 12:47 am 1209862029
I shop at Aldi and notice my bill for generally the same items is much more than it used to be.
One major example : 12 months ago, Aldi sold a dozen large eggs for $.79. 3 weeks ago I paid $1.79. WTF?!!!? That is MORE than double. Call me crazy but that is the epitome of skyrocketing prices. @@
May 4th, 2008 at 03:18 am 1209871106
2L of milk $3- $4 (probably equivalent to 2 gallons)
1 dozen eggs Eggs from brandname $3...average price $4.60.
Bread: from $3 to $4
I don't think I've seen 80cents for a dozen eggs in my lifetime. Even if our dollar were half the value: $1.60 for a dozen eggs would be truly amazing. Ours are going up to...they are making things in smaller sizes as well and a tin of baked beans had 30% beans in it What the?
I want your prices : )
May 4th, 2008 at 01:08 pm 1209906487
May 4th, 2008 at 11:59 pm 1209945584
May 5th, 2008 at 01:37 am 1209951439
May 5th, 2008 at 05:42 pm 1210009336
May 6th, 2008 at 04:36 am 1210048565
I work in a bakery, and I am aware of the wholesale prices of the goods we purchase. and prices ARE going up. You may not shop for fresh bread, that is fine, but then that means that to you, prices may not be going up. but for the others who may not use coupons every day, and don't buy day old bread, prices are increasing ever so much. i have some increases to offer you, that my flatmate and I have noticed over the past few weeks:
cocoa: $4.09 -> $4.29
budget milk, 1litre: $1.37 -> $1.55
budget skim milk, 1 litre: $1.57 -> $1.69
home brand pasta, 500g: $0.59c -> $0.64c
free range eggs,12: $5.29(normal) -> $5.70 (on special)
fresh bread: $2.90 -> $3.20
i don't know about fresh fruit and veges because i buy them at the market and I can haggle.
May 7th, 2008 at 04:42 pm 1210178535
Yes, I too can buy less expensive items to compensate for the higher prices right now but how long am I going to be able to keep up with that? It reminds me of those in debt who are robbing Peter to pay Paul. It's the same concept.
May 8th, 2008 at 01:31 am 1210210309
May 8th, 2008 at 09:02 pm 1210280575
This is the beginning, I think of a sea change. We need to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels, and that might mean not traveling as much, finding work closer to home, phasing out our gas-powered cars, and buying food that hasn't been transported very far. It feels unfair, but so is our environmental footprint to the rest of the world.
Just my (only imperfectly informed) opinion.
May 13th, 2008 at 05:45 pm 1210700738
May 14th, 2008 at 04:14 am 1210738487
On another note - I work in an agriculturally-related retail store, and you should see the spikes we've seen in some of our products. In the last year, alot of lawn/crop fertilizer has increased 50%, and that stuff wasn't cheap to begin with. Feed for horses, poultry, and cattle keeps increasing as well, partly because of the increased demand for grain, and the rising transportation costs. Of course... this doesn't bode well for the future of beef and poultry prices. If it costs more to feed the cow, it's gonna cost more to buy it's meat & milk.
In the words of one of my favorite customers: "Chicken feed ain't chicken feed anymore."
May 14th, 2008 at 10:07 pm 1210802849
Of course this just means I can probably switch to all organic soon. At this rate, my organic stuff is going to be cheaper. Milk is already on par with the commercial stuff and the organic prices have not been going up in my area.
May 14th, 2008 at 10:57 pm 1210805826
May 15th, 2008 at 04:26 pm 1210868805
1. Have food prices gone up? Absolutely yes. There is really no debating that.
2. Can you still do things to keep your food budget under control. Also, yes. You can pay better attention to sales, use coupons, buy in bulk, comparison shop with different stores, switch to cheaper brands, etc.
Unfortunately, the cheaper options are also often less healthy options so you need to keep that in mind. You may be able to save money by buying canned and frozen and boxed convenience foods, but you may be sacrificing health for cost.
May 15th, 2008 at 09:22 pm 1210886538
I don't care how well you cook or how little food you waste, it is costing more to buy groceries today than it did a month or two months or 6 months ago.
May 18th, 2008 at 01:01 am 1211072472
Also, it also costs more to drive to the store and buy the groceries. I use Aldi's and coupons but even our newspapers have gone up in price (my coupon source) as several grocery stores around here no longer take internet coupons.
May 18th, 2008 at 03:16 am 1211080596
May 18th, 2008 at 11:23 pm 1211153012
BUT mostly we haven't noticed a big price jump. IT seems like other areas of the country are having very different experiences. I haven't personally seen the price increases noted in the comments. We haven't been changing our grocery habits or anything. We also realize we have advantage buying in bulk as well. Prices are affecting single people and smaller families much more harshly than us.
May 18th, 2008 at 11:42 pm 1211154146
I have noticed eggs, milk and a few basic items with pretty sizable increases.
Most everything else is in the 'somewhat bothersome several percent increase' category.
Thanks for all the interest. let this one die!