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Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/29/2009 12:53:58 PM
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MamaAng
Posts: 345
Joined: 4/20/2009
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With the turn of the economy causing our finances to be tighter, I have been cutting expenses especially in the food area. I have cut back on seafood, purchase only meats on sale and follow the sale ads closely. I was able to shave off $150 in costs this month. I'm curious to know how much families spend on food a month. My questions are --- How much do you spend on a monthly basis and how many people (including ages of kids) are in your family?
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/29/2009 2:44:56 PM
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LCannon
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From: Lebanon, OR
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Three adults and I estimate $250/month(the grocery person budgets $75/week but rarely spend $60)and we eat good! Lots o' fresh stuff, salad/veggies not much meat but some pork, fish and chicken. Pasta, rice, bread, soup, canned and homemade, etc...
< Message edited by LCannon -- 9/30/2009 2:23:00 PM >
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 1:06:14 PM
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churchsinger
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I spend about $200 a month on groceries. I am a single gal. I have food allergies and such, so I have to buy things like rice milk and goat yogurt that I can only get at a health food store. The rest of the stuff, like frozen veggies, I get at SuperTarget. I don't eat a lot of meat. If I do, I get free range or wild meat and fish at the health food store. So my food bill could be lower if I ate ramen noodles or something, but I value healthy eating above low prices.
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 1:08:40 PM
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doinkdom
Posts: 5357
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From: The higher lowcountry
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quote:
ORIGINAL: churchsinger
I spend about $200 a month on groceries. I am a single gal. I have food allergies and such, so I have to buy things like rice milk and goat yogurt that I can only get at a health food store. The rest of the stuff, like frozen veggies, I get at SuperTarget. I don't eat a lot of meat. If I do, I get free range or wild meat and fish at the health food store. So my food bill could be lower if I ate ramen noodles or something, but I value healthy eating above low prices.
Just as point of information only:
Our local Big Lots carries rice milk, which is what I buy.
Wal-Mart also carries it now, but I try not to shop there.
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 2:09:46 PM
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Mrs.Wifey
Posts: 2672
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From: The Gorgeous plains of Colorado
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quote:
ORIGINAL: churchsinger
I spend about $200 a month on groceries. I am a single gal. I have food allergies and such, so I have to buy things like rice milk and goat yogurt that I can only get at a health food store. The rest of the stuff, like frozen veggies, I get at SuperTarget. I don't eat a lot of meat. If I do, I get free range or wild meat and fish at the health food store. So my food bill could be lower if I ate ramen noodles or something, but I value healthy eating above low prices.
You could probably save money just by not shopping at Super Target  I find them to be generally over priced compared to shopping at a regular grocery store.
We eat a whole foods diet for the most part and only spend about $350 for a family of 3.
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 2:37:24 PM
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3cappuccinosmom
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While with my family, we're spending $300/mo for 1 adult and 3 children. That is our contribution to the grocery bill. Probably more than I would normally spend but my family eats differently than we usually do, and so we are eating what they eat. More meat, yogurts, etc.
Previously, with the food prices increasing, I had been spending closer to $400, but that included dh in the budget (he's out of the country at the moment), and the expense was due a lot to dh's food preferences.
Both ways, though, we eat a lot of fruit and veg, get plenty of protien one way or another.
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 Moo
"Yup, I'm in agreement with Maggie here on all of this" Manda, April 2010
The Ballad of Bad Biruk
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 2:40:23 PM
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3cappuccinosmom
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Oh, and one way I am contributing to my family while we're here is cooking for them. The way I cook lowers the food bill, as they were eating a lot of convenience food before.
Meat, especially, can be used either cheaply or in an expensive way. For instance, last night I could have marinated and baked chicken breasts, which would usually mean 1 chix breast per person. Gets expensive Instead, I had 1.5 lb chicken (2 breasts), sliced them thin, and stir fried them with some other veggies. Served with 1 box of couscous and a bag of frozen broccoli, it was delicious and more than enough for the 5 of us who were eating that night.
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Moo
"Yup, I'm in agreement with Maggie here on all of this" Manda, April 2010
The Ballad of Bad Biruk
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 2:43:36 PM
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NuthouseMama
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I spend about 200-350 a month. We have 5 children (one nursing only), 4 big kids, 2-3 adults (MIL is over at least every other day)
I get a lot of produce, and we eat plenty of protien, either beans or meat. I cook mostly from scratch.
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 2:46:08 PM
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MamaAng
Posts: 345
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I don't separate paper products, toiletries, etc out of my budget. Are you budgets food only? Or do you include toilet paper, paper towel, cleaning supplies, toiletries? I think that may be why my figure is so high. How much do you spend on those other items?
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 2:56:49 PM
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doinkdom
Posts: 5357
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I include those items in my budget, but I don't buy them at the grocery store - I prefer Big Lots.
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 3:30:06 PM
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Mrs.Wifey
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So, I went back and looked at our food budget. I'm probably spending closer to $450-500 a month on groceries  I'm not really bothered by that because we are making enough money to do so.
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 4:58:41 PM
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betterisoneday
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Right now we're staying with my parents so I'm not sure how much our total grocery bill is. A few months back I would spend $150-$200 a month for myself and two young (growing) boys. I use coupons and store cards and watch the sales though.
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 5:48:03 PM
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Mollymouser
Posts: 5901
Joined: 4/18/2005
From: california, land of the happy cows
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quote:
ORIGINAL: 3cappuccinosmom
Oh, and one way I am contributing to my family while we're here is cooking for them. The way I cook lowers the food bill, as they were eating a lot of convenience food before.
Meat, especially, can be used either cheaply or in an expensive way. For instance, last night I could have marinated and baked chicken breasts, which would usually mean 1 chix breast per person. Gets expensive Instead, I had 1.5 lb chicken (2 breasts), sliced them thin, and stir fried them with some other veggies. Served with 1 box of couscous and a bag of frozen broccoli, it was delicious and more than enough for the 5 of us who were eating that night.
OK ... I think you need to come cook for us sometime! :)
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 9/30/2009 5:50:22 PM
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Mollymouser
Posts: 5901
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From: california, land of the happy cows
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quote:
ORIGINAL: MamaAng
I don't separate paper products, toiletries, etc out of my budget. Are you budgets food only? Or do you include toilet paper, paper towel, cleaning supplies, toiletries? I think that may be why my figure is so high. How much do you spend on those other items?
I try not to buy toilet paper, paper towels, cleaning supplies or toiletries at the grocery store ... they always seem to be less expensive elsewhere. We sort of clump these items into a general household category which also includes things like trash bags, kitty litter, cat food and bird seed (plus all of the above.)
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MARRIED TO A MILITARY PILOT PLEASE PRAY FOR OUR TROOPS!
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 10/1/2009 12:44:44 AM
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bolt.
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From: Canada
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We spend $80 per week (Canadian) for 2 adults and 2 children under 5. That's $320 most months, at the exchange rate yields abut $295 US. We eat mostly organic meat/poultry and milk, but regular everything else.
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 10/4/2009 6:48:16 PM
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CMT8808
Posts: 911
Joined: 9/4/2009
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Wow! I just totalled my monthly grocery bill for last month and it was almost $600. There are 2 adults and 1 toddler.
I do not buy the seafood in this state other than the shrimp, because they are outrageous. I bought a lobster for my husband for Father's day and they charged me $40.00 for a 1 1/2 lb Lobster and to me that is ridiculeous. I am from the East coast originally and I could be 3 at that price. Plus I refuse to pay their price on steamers, here they want 50 cents per clam, they need to get real.
We are planning to join Costco or Sam's club, so it may go down some, because I use to be a member of BJ's and I know we did not spend $600.
This does not include paper products or cleaning supplies. I shop elsewhere for that, because as mentioned the supermarket is way overpriced concerning them.
CMT
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 10/4/2009 8:01:09 PM
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CMT8808
Posts: 911
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Harvie
Does that include infant formula? Or any "specialty" foods (for a special diet?)
No, my son is not on forumla anymore. (And that was a huge expense back then. He can not drink cows milk, so had to buy goat's milk which was $20.00 a gal.)
The only thing I do different, is I buy stuff for his lunch, like Chef B, Mac and Cheese, frozen pizza, lunchables, hot dogs and f.f., children's yogurt, and snacks ( like cookies, cakes, chips and the like)which is stuff I never use to buy.
I do know that when I shopped at BJ's I could get 8 cans of Chef B for $6.83 and here (just moved here a year ago) it cost $1.00 and sometimes more per can, so that is $1,17+ more than I usually spend, plus I use to be able to buy the Mac and Cheese 3 boxes for a buck, but here they are a buck a box, so that is $2.00 more, also they tax your food here, where on the east coast there is no food tax on what they call neccessities (food, clothing, etc...)
But we have the normal diet of meat (chicken,beef,pork) fresh vegetables, pasta, potatoes, rice, bread.
And I am the left over transition queen, I can take any left over meal and make it into something new. My husband hates leftovers, so learned this quite well, so I need to figure this out, because that is outrageous.
Thanx
CMT
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Never Underestimate the Power of God
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 10/4/2009 8:10:06 PM
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3cappuccinosmom
Posts: 4032
Joined: 4/12/2005
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quote:
The only thing I do different, is I buy stuff for his lunch, like Chef B, Mac and Cheese, frozen pizza, lunchables, hot dogs and f.f., children's yogurt, and snacks ( like cookies, cakes, chips and the like)which is stuff I never use to buy.
I know all of that seems like "small beans" compared to the rest of what you eat, but those specialty things are total budget killers, as well as snacks. Per unit they are usually way, way more expensive than non-specialty alternatives.
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Moo
"Yup, I'm in agreement with Maggie here on all of this" Manda, April 2010
The Ballad of Bad Biruk
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RE: Food Expenses - Monthly - 10/4/2009 8:31:51 PM
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garsyt
Posts: 1934
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quote:
Wow! I just totalled my monthly grocery bill for last month and it was almost $600. There are 2 adults and 1 toddler.
That's about our monthly budget for our family of 6!
Our budget includes buying LOTS of fruit and most of our meat is bought at a local butcher who buys from local farmers. We go through at least 4 gallons of milk each week and more during the summer months. During the school year we go through a lot of bread and luncheon meats for lunches. We also go through lots and lots of yogurts, and individual serving sizes of fruit during the school year. I know it would be cheaper for me to buy fruit in bulk or by the can and portion those out in reusable containers, but to me it's not worth the hassle of making sure those containers made it home every night. My kids usually pack their own lunches this way. I also buy individual serving containers of juices, water and sometimes milk too, especially for lunches.
This does not include any paper products, toiletries, pet food or other items - just food.
Blessings,
Garsy
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