My mostly organic grocery bill....is this comparable to your area?

[FaithManor]

Dh and I ended up shopping this afternoon which we normally never do on a Sunday. But, his computer chair broke and he has a very long day coming up tomorrow that would be quite uncomfortable in a kitchen chair. So, I went grocery shopping at my favorite supermarket near the office supply store. This is what I bought and the total. I thought it would be interesting to know if this was considered good, bad, average for those of you who try to buy a lot of organics.

 

Organics:

 

8 yogurts, asstd. flavors

1 bunch leeks

3 lemons

2 lbs. of heirloom mini-peppers - red, yellow, and orange

2 lbs. fingerling potatoes

1 large celery heart

1 lb. strawberries

4 - 8 oz. pkgs. baby portabella mushrooms

1/2 lb. shelled peas

5 nectarines

5 lbs sweet onions

1- 12 oz. bottle soy sauce

1- 16 oz. jar olives

2 lbs. jasmine rice

1- 32 oz/ raspberry/grape juice

2- 16 oz. bottles of Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar

2- boxes spaghetti (whole grain)

2 - 1lb. bags of baby carrots

1 large box chocolate pudding

 

Non-organics:

10 - 4 pks. of toilet paper

5 - small bags of candy (DH'S CANDY TOOTH WAS VIBRATING - I really shouldn't let him go shopping with me)

1/2 lb. Brie

1/2 lb. Smoked Provolone

1 lb. extra sharp cheddar

1 lb. colby-jack

1- 32. oz jar pepperochini

1 box saltines

4 - 1lb bags rice (this was to be donated to a food bank asking for rice for their soups)

1 - 100 count bag of baby shrimp

1 bag - 24 oz. bay scallops

 

My total:

$112.04

[justamouse]

All that for 112? Wow. I need to come live by you.

[Corraleno]

That's probably a bit less than what I spend each week for a similar grocery list, with a similar % of organics, and I get almost all of my produce and dairy from a CSA. So if you got all that from a grocery store for $112, I think you did great!

 

Jackie

[OrganicAnn]

Our grocery bill keeps going down. Less and less preprocessed (we still buy crackers and tortilla chips). Organic veg (but this time of year much of it is from the garden). Organic diary (except sometimes ice cream). About $75 per week.

[Harriet Vane]

Very good prices.

[tricia]

I feel like that's a great price. We buy mostly organic too but I spend way more. Of course I do have a dozen kids but still.....

 

I do make my own bread stuff, buy organic milk and eggs from a local farmer, 1.50 a gallon and 2.00 for eggs. Prices are crazy right now everywhere!!

[i.love.lucy]

I don't buy a lot of what's on your list, but 112 doesn't seem too bad.

 

But this isn't a WEEKLY trip is it? Where's the milk? Or anything for breakfasts? What about lunch? None of my staples are on that list, and maybe that's my problem. Milk, half and half, eggs, butter, more fruit, bread, coffee, peanut butter, cereal or oatmeal, salad fixin's, dressing for said salad, the few processed things we do buy like Goldfish crackers or tortilla chips. And that's not even counting the specifics I need for certain recipes.

 

Maybe if you can share a recipe or two for what you are doing with those items...

[FaithManor]

Hi, I. Love. Lucy,

 

No, this isn't a typical weekly grocery list for most people. That's because we get our eggs for free from the farm that I farm-sit for. I get one and half dozen per week because I do chores on Tuesdays and Thursdays and keep the eggs collected on those days.

 

Our milk comes from our dairy cow that is boarded at an organic dairy farm. I pay $60.00 per month boarding fees and take between 12-18 gallons of milk per month and the farmer keeps the rest and sells it to offset his costs of maintaining Mabel.

 

My organic baking supplies come from a Mennonite grocery store and the prices there are superb for those items. So, about every three months I will buy some items there in bulk.

 

We raise a pig each year for pork and buy a side of beef from the organic dairy farmer. I don't buy meat at supermarkets except chicken when I can get organic or at least free-range, no antibiotics and growth hormone, cuts.

 

Normally, I don't buy nearly as much fresh produce at this supermarket. But, our garden did very poorly this year. Last year we had lots of honey bees, a few butterflies, and many, many bumblebees. This year we had NO pollinators. The house next door was sold and the new owner heavily sprayed the yard with all kinds of pesticides and herbicides. So, I think our pollinators fled. Additionally, our "do not spray" sign for mosquito control, was knocked down and we didn't realize it until too late...we got a dose of that as well. Now I have to purchase from this supermarket and from a local organic Amish farmer in order to do my canning, dehydrating, and freezing. Sigh.

 

As for breakfast, my children eat either scrambled or boiled eggs, fruit and cheese, or hashbrowns with fruit and yogurt or a very tall glass of milk. We don't buy cereal or other similar type breakfast foods. Maybe once per week, I will make blueberry pancakes. We pick several quarts each year on unsprayed, completely wild state land about two miles from the house. Around the holidays, I will make blueberry bread as a treat for the kiddos. But, most of the time breakfast is a protein and a fruit. If I give the boys whole grains and simple carbs, they want to eat again an hour later and can't concentrate. The protein/fruit combo works well.

 

I was just wondering if, for what I bought, prices were comparable, worse, or better than what most are experiencing. There is a whole foods market 80 miles from here that I have always wanted to make a trip to but I have been told the prices are outrageous! This would not shock me because it is located in one of the most expensive neighborhoods/shopping districts of the north suburbs of Detroit. So, I probably won't waste my time.

 

Thanks,

Faith

[6packofun]

That sounds crazy good to me. I'd spend that much on just the non-organics on your list, probably!

[BikeBookBread]

Where do you shop and where do you live! This is a steal compared to where we are...

[MariannNOVA]

Where do you shop and where do you live! This is a steal compared to where we are...

 

 

:iagree: I've spent $250. betw Fri and Sat. at Wegman's and that does not include beef, chicken, milk, eggs, cheese, bread as we purchase those from two local organic farms. I know I will be back at Wegman's the end of this week and I will spend about $130. (again, those other items will come from the farm.)

 

I think you did really well.

[i.love.lucy]

Hi, I. Love. Lucy,

 

No, this isn't a typical weekly grocery list for most people. That's because we get our eggs for free from the farm that I farm-sit for. I get one and half dozen per week because I do chores on Tuesdays and Thursdays and keep the eggs collected on those days.

 

Our milk comes from our dairy cow that is boarded at an organic dairy farm. I pay $60.00 per month boarding fees and take between 12-18 gallons of milk per month and the farmer keeps the rest and sells it to offset his costs of maintaining Mabel.

 

My organic baking supplies come from a Mennonite grocery store and the prices there are superb for those items. So, about every three months I will buy some items there in bulk.

 

We raise a pig each year for pork and buy a side of beef from the organic dairy farmer. I don't buy meat at supermarkets except chicken when I can get organic or at least free-range, no antibiotics and growth hormone, cuts.

 

Normally, I don't buy nearly as much fresh produce at this supermarket. But, our garden did very poorly this year. Last year we had lots of honey bees, a few butterflies, and many, many bumblebees. This year we had NO pollinators. The house next door was sold and the new owner heavily sprayed the yard with all kinds of pesticides and herbicides. So, I think our pollinators fled. Additionally, our "do not spray" sign for mosquito control, was knocked down and we didn't realize it until too late...we got a dose of that as well. Now I have to purchase from this supermarket and from a local organic Amish farmer in order to do my canning, dehydrating, and freezing. Sigh.

 

As for breakfast, my children eat either scrambled or boiled eggs, fruit and cheese, or hashbrowns with fruit and yogurt or a very tall glass of milk. We don't buy cereal or other similar type breakfast foods. Maybe once per week, I will make blueberry pancakes. We pick several quarts each year on unsprayed, completely wild state land about two miles from the house. Around the holidays, I will make blueberry bread as a treat for the kiddos. But, most of the time breakfast is a protein and a fruit. If I give the boys whole grains and simple carbs, they want to eat again an hour later and can't concentrate. The protein/fruit combo works well.

 

I was just wondering if, for what I bought, prices were comparable, worse, or better than what most are experiencing. There is a whole foods market 80 miles from here that I have always wanted to make a trip to but I have been told the prices are outrageous! This would not shock me because it is located in one of the most expensive neighborhoods/shopping districts of the north suburbs of Detroit. So, I probably won't waste my time.

 

Thanks,

Faith

Thanks for clarifying Faith!!! I really need to get out of my grocery store "box" in thinking about food. I guess I'm just a suburban girl, have been all my life. No farm, no garden, no cows, no fresh eggs. POOR ME! :lol: I'm doing the best I can with what I can find at the grocery store and it's not great. Then I go to the local farmers market and everything is even more expensive there than the organics at the grocery store. :glare:

 

Your post has given me some fresh ideas to think about. It might seem weird to some of you country girls, but us city girls don't know how to go about a lot of this stuff! Someday I will have a lovely garden, and I would love to have chickens too. Someday...

[FaithManor]

This shopping was at a Meijer store. I am very pleased with the selection and the prices. Also, they have a company policy that if it can be purchased locally, it must, even if that is more expensive than having it shipped from out of state. So, they've been very helpful in supporting local farmers and in particular, organic farmers. The customer service desk can even provide you with a list of exactly where your produce came from down to the location of the farm, the owner, type of operation, etc. I really like that. A couple of huge organic greehouses have come into operation in this area to supply organic produce in the winter months. It's great that it isn't being shipped from California or foreign countries.

 

I don't know if you have Meijers in your area. I was told that it is more of a Mid-western company. They are also a huge department store in addition to the groceries. It would be similar to a Walmart except that it is much, much larger, with a huge array of healthy foods to choose from and I'd say that most of the housewares and much of the clothing is a little better quality than Walmart - more along the lines of Target.

 

What is Wegman's? I've never heard of it. Would it be similar to a Whole Foods Market?

 

Faith

[MariannNOVA]

This shopping was at a Meijer store. I am very pleased with the selection and the prices. Also, they have a company policy that if it can be purchased locally, it must, even if that is more expensive than having it shipped from out of state. So, they've been very helpful in supporting local farmers and in particular, organic farmers. The customer service desk can even provide you with a list of exactly where your produce came from down to the location of the farm, the owner, type of operation, etc. I really like that. A couple of huge organic greehouses have come into operation in this area to supply organic produce in the winter months. It's great that it isn't being shipped from California or foreign countries.

 

I don't know if you have Meijers in your area. I was told that it is more of a Mid-western company. They are also a huge department store in addition to the groceries. It would be similar to a Walmart except that it is much, much larger, with a huge array of healthy foods to choose from and I'd say that most of the housewares and much of the clothing is a little better quality than Walmart - more along the lines of Target.

 

What is Wegman's? I've never heard of it. Would it be similar to a Whole Foods Market?

 

Faith

 

Excellent reply - Thanks for the info.

 

Wegman's is family-owned from NY State and opening up stores here in Va at the rate of maybe one a year. They are similar to Whole Foods in their organic offerings but they are also a full scale totally stocked grocery store, international products with a huge freshly cooked prepared foods department (salad bar, steam table, butcher counters, fresh fish, prepared dinners, sushi bar, fresh bakery). I can find pretty much anything and everything at Wegman's. And, their prices are about the lowest (on some items) around here.

 

They also have an amazing 'Home Items' department - dinnerware, LC, table linens, etc. Those prices, well, one can certainly do better at Tuesday Morning or ebay.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

Sounds pretty good to me!

[Faith]

I couldn't buy that stuff that cheap here. I have to use Azure Standard for the cheapest prices. No whole foods here. No organic grocery stores except the few organics Walmart carries. Eggs from local farmers are $4 a dozen. Raw milk is $5 a gallon. You did great!

[LuvToRead]

That would probably cost close to $200 at my local store, and that's not organic. My store doesn't even sell Brie or smoked provolone. I would say that price sounds pretty good. Produce can get really expensive where I live.

[astrid]

That sounds crazy good to me. I'd spend that much on just the non-organics on your list, probably!

 

:iagree::iagree:

 

Bravo! Here in expensive Connecticut, that's an almost unheard-of total!

 

astrid

[mcconnellboys]

Yes, I think those prices are good.