Do you think you could you cut 30% off your grocery budget?

[melissel]

I'm debating trying to do this, and I can't decide if it's unnecessarily crazy-making or totally reasonable. Our current budget is $700, and I'm wondering if I can cut $200 out of it. We're a family of four, and while I do use some coupons, we mostly eat natural/organic/local, which of course costs more (we're in the land of agrotainment, so things like picking your own fruit/veggies won't save us any money).

 

What do you think? Do you think you could cut your grocery budget by 30%? Anyone care to try it with me?

[Bear23]

You could cut if you did lots of Frozen veggies/fruits? Wait until meat goes on the 25-50 percent off. I would love to cut our bill because ours is about the same and we are family of 5. Since I am overseas 90% of the food comes frozen from the states so we will get out the local currency to buy fresh fruit and veggies.

Good luck on cutting your food bill. Would going to a Costco or Sams help? Get the bulked meats and get home, seperate the meat and place in a freezer?

[applethyme]

:iagree:

[Desert Rat]

I wouldn't want to either. I suppose I could though. We are limited with good deals because we're in the middle of the desert. So, little/no grown produce to barter with, more expensive food, no double coupons, carpy sales. I already coupon, comparison shop, stock up, and buy ahead. But 30%? That's doable but not something I would enjoy.

[craftymama]

I don't think we could do it. I feel like we don't buy a lot of extras as it is and I know I can't cut the produce budget since I have a hard enough time finding good stuff around here. I think we have lowered ours by increasing the amount of veggies in everything while lowering the amount of meat, but it could be wishful thinking. Good luck!

[Rhonda in TX]

It would be difficult and I would find it stressful. I know others do it, though, so I hope it works out for you!

[Kathryn]

I could but I don't want to. I'd rather sacrifice in other areas than in the quality of food we consume.

[elegantlion]

Well we had to, it sucks. I'm trying to eat gluten free and I'm tired of the selections I can afford. I'm eating pizza tonight (fresh from the store) because that is what the boys bought and I'm sick and hungry and can't cook for myself tonight. They did the shopping this week, I don't want to know what they spent. :glare:

 

It's hard when you have a picky teen who is constantly hungry no matter what he eats. Okay enough of my complaint.

 

I think you COULD, maybe I would see where to cut back in your menu first and not assign a dollar amount. In our area 700 for a family of four would be a generous amount, so there would be room to tweak.

 

I would also look at the non-grocery items to see if you can cut back there.

[Wabi Sabi]

I could probably cut my budget by half if absolutely necessary, but I don't want to. We would have to totally change the way we eat and none of us would be very pleased with the changes. It wouldn't be as healthy for us either (less fresh produce, more rice/beans/pasta/breads, etc.)

[stripe]

The only way I could cut would be by avoiding waste. That is my shortfall. Otherwise I am very thrifty and eat lots of dried beans and cheap produce already.

 

I may save a few cents on tomatoes and herbs, though, this summer by growing my own.

[Catwoman]

Realistically, of course I could. All I would have to do is start looking for sales and clipping coupons, and I would probably save quite a bit. I could also stop buying organic stuff, which would save me a lot, as well. I could cut way back on the junk food and soda, as well as desserts, which would be good for both our budget and our health.

 

Honestly, if I wanted to lower my overall food budget, I would just limit the number of times we eat out every week, and haul my lazy butt out to the kitchen and cook something. :tongue_smilie:

 

I don't have a budget for anything, really, so I'm only guessing about how much money I would be saving. (If I don't know how much I already spend, I can't possibly know how much I would save by cutting back, but I'm sure it would be pretty significant.)

 

If I had to find a way to save money, though, I think I'd see what other luxuries I could eliminate before I started hacking away at my food budget, especially if we already ate all or most of our meals at home.

[DawnM]

We did $600 for a month for years while we got out of debt. It stinks. There are 5 of us.

 

It IS possible, but it is not fun.

 

We now spend about $700-$750 and there is some breathing room!

[nova147]

I don't think *I* could cut 30% off my grocery budget at this point, but that's because I've already cut that much or more over the past year.

 

There are a lot of things to consider when deciding if *you* can. We do $400/month for 6 (ages in signature). But we live in a fairly low cost of living area. And we don't do organic. But, natural foods are not necessarily more expensive than processed.

 

Check out moneysavingmom .com. She has a whole series on lowering your grocery budget.

 

If you do decide to try, don't try 30% right now. Try $50 less for two months. Adjust slowly.

 

Also, think about WHY you want to lower the budget. What are you gaining? And what are you willing to give up to get that? Are you willing to eat conventional foods instead of organic? Change your meal compositions (meatless meals, etc)?

[Murphy101]

I could absolutely cut 30%.

 

This is also known as adding 40% to our medical expenses.

 

:/

Edited May 11, 2012 by Martha

[LauraGB]

Maybe, but I don't want to.

 

Agreed. Not in good conscience. I'd look elsewhere to cut $200 first.

 

OP, your budget is pretty much on par with mine (per person, that is; I cook for 7). I struggle every week trying to stay on budget lately. However, summer is coming up and my plan is to actually spend more during those fresh produce months so I can save more during the winter months by canning, freezing, etc, by taking advantage of the less expensive produce during the growing seasons.

 

If you eat a lot of meat, you could certainly save money in that capacity by purchasing a plant-based protein source or extending a chicken to make three meals instead of one, but not knowing your regular diet, it's hard to say if that would help to the tune of $200.

[Entropymama]

Like everyone has said, it's a matter of whether you want to change your eating habits. There are plenty of cheap, healthy foods out there, but you'd be eating many of the same things over and over again and giving up convenience. For example, I can get oats at Whole Foods for almost nothing. I can feed my family of 7 breakfast of oatmeal with brown sugar and milk for 50 cents. Add half a banana each and that's $1 for breakfast. If we did that every day.. we'd be very bored but save a lot of money. Peanut butter and jelly (organic) on home made bread is also really cheap but healthy, or do PB and honey or bananas. We eat lots and lots of organic potatoes, in many forms. Splurge on some organic ground beef at Costco ($4.50/lb) and whole organic chickens at Trader Joe's ($2.50/lb) but only eat meat 3 times per week. There are ways to do it, it just takes commitment and planning. Try heavenlyhomemakers.com or heartkeepercommonroom.com for recipes and menu plans - those ladies eat all natural and organic for very little.

[joyfulhomeschooler]

Wow! I wish we had 600-700 to spend on groceries! We are a family of 5 and we spend about 250$ on groceries a month. That is pushing it for us and I don't have the time or headache room for coupons. If I had that much for our grocery budget we would buy all organic... but we don't so we make do with off brand stuff and whatever is on sale. So for us the answer would be no. We already spend the bare minimum on groceries.

[KungFuPanda]

We're a family of four. I think $500 per month would be doable, but every meal would have to be planned . . .no popping out to Chipotle on lazy days.

[BlessedMom]

Yes I could.

[Jpoy85]

I could. I use coupons and make a meal plan and stick to it.

[cjzimmer1]

Our budget is $650 for 7 people (but I'm in a lower cost area). I could cut some but I don't think I could do 30%. We do eat pretty much whole grain. The kids eat oats in some form (oatmeal, muesli, muffins, pancakes) every single morning. I buy 50 pound bags and it's 50 cents a pound. So breakfast costs maybe 1.00-1.50 depending on what I add to it for 5 kids. I really don't think I can feed 5 growing kids for any less. I grow many of my own veggies (from free plants from my parent's greenhouse) and buy a lot in bulk from the amish (very very cheap) and can and freeze. I make most everything from scratch.

 

I could save a little bit of money if I went back to white grains versus whole grains but it would probably only save me at most $20 a month. White pasta is 1.19-1.29 a pound (or 1.00 when it's on sale). The whole wheat pasta is 1.33(doesn't go on sale). I buy brown basmati rice in 50 pound bags. It's cheaper than the white rice at the grocery store. I could cut out quinoa and couscous as those cost me more than pasta.

 

The easiest place for me to cut would be to give up my grassfed beef. However even that wouldn't get me to 30% a month. I bought a half a cow and it averaged to 4.58 a pound for my take home meat. Even the cheap nasty grocery store hamburger is running about 3.00 a pound forget anything of better quality. And I already stretch a pound of hamburger by adding a pound of brown lentils to it.

 

Our milk budget is high but since 4 of my 5 kids are either lactose intolerant or outright allergic to milk, I can't buy the cheapo cow's milk and the alternative milks cost a lot more. I know they don't "need" milk but they all like it so a cup for breakfast is kind of our "splurge" for the day.

 

Our grocery has been pretty bare bones for years, even if went back to processed foods/coupons, I'd be surprised if I could save much more than 50-100 a month so that would be at most 15% for us.

 

If you are desperate (as in not being able to pay the mortgage/rent), than yeah, I'd be cutting the grocery budget/visiting food pantries etc. If you are looking at cutting this just so you can get ahead in some other area, no I wouldn't even try.

[Mergath]

That's funny, I actually had to do this over the last two weeks, and by almost exactly thirty percent, too. I normally have $300 for food (my other household stuff comes out of a different part of the budget) for every two weeks, but dh's last paycheck was small because he missed a few days thanks to the flu. I had to cut it down to $200, and it was possible, but it definitely wasn't fun. Nothing organic, not even milk, and we ate a big pot of lentil soup for two and a half days. I could do it if I had to, but it's not something I'd choose to do.

Edited May 11, 2012 by Mergath

[mytwomonkeys]

we are a family of 4 and our budget is $500 month. we eat very healthy for the most part & it's enough for us (but definitely requires meal planning). we live in a rural area though, and that helps a great deal. my neighbor sells beef from his own cattle farm. my other neighbor owns a dairy farm. i can get a raw gallon of milk for $4. the meat is cheaper than the junk at the supermarket. there is also a produce stand in town that only sells local. it is very fresh. plus other neighbors give me veggies from their gardens a lot. when we lived in charlotte, there were food co-op's and cow pooling groups, etc. that made it fairly affordable too.

[amo_mea_filiis.]

It would not be easy. We would be around $340. Under $500 is hard. Under $400 and i cant feed us as well as i would like (the lower we go, the more grains and junk i have to add).

[Stayseeliz]

Doing local, pastured, organic foods I can't get our budget below $800 for a family of 6 (one is a baby). I make everything from scratch but I can't get it lower. I am trying to stop stressing about it!

[CalicoKat]

Well we had to, it sucks. I'm trying to eat gluten free and I'm tired of the selections I can afford. I'm eating pizza tonight (fresh from the store) because that is what the boys bought and I'm sick and hungry and can't cook for myself tonight. They did the shopping this week, I don't want to know what they spent. :glare:

 

It's hard when you have a picky teen who is constantly hungry no matter what he eats. Okay enough of my complaint.

 

I think you COULD, maybe I would see where to cut back in your menu first and not assign a dollar amount. In our area 700 for a family of four would be a generous amount, so there would be room to tweak.

 

I would also look at the non-grocery items to see if you can cut back there.

:iagree: Be religious about eating those leftovers. Nothing gets wasted.

[ssavings]

I could, and I'm considering it. We're lucky in that we get some things free/very cheap from friends.

 

I could use more non-meat proteins, rely more on in-season fruits and veggies, and do more homemade.

[elegantlion]

:iagree: Be religious about eating those leftovers. Nothing gets wasted.

 

Our meals don't really generate leftovers. If they do dh takes them to work.

[joyfulhomeschooler]

I am starting to feel bad reading all these comments. Do we really need to feed our kids organic for them to grow well and be healthy? Yes, obviously it is better. If you can't afford it though, you can't afford it. I just can't imagine spending so much on groceries. That would be great! But completely extravagant for us. I am not intending to put anyone down. If anything I feel like the bad person here, feeding my kids "the junk" from the grocery store. We buy cheap no matter if processed or not, white or wheat, local or non local. The only organic item we eat is our chicken eggs. :( Wish we had the money to buy the best of everything for our kiddos, but my husband is a hard worker and I appreciate what he brings to the table for our family.

[Rosy]

I don't know how much it is saving us yet, but we have Bountiful Baskets in our area and that has changed the way I feed our family. I had already decided to cut out sugar, flour, artificial sweetners, potatoes, white rice, and anything processed. Then we started getting Bountiful Baskets, which is basically a fruit/veggie buying co-op. We get about $50 worth of produce for $15, and we can add on when we want. Those are the foundation for our meals, and I add in quinoa, meat, etc. as necessary. We do not get organic, so I don't know if that's as good of a deal (I've heard it isn't).

 

http://bountifulbaskets.org/

[Rosy]

I am starting to feel bad reading all these comments. Do we really need to feed our kids organic for them to grow well and be healthy? Yes, obviously it is better. If you can't afford it though, you can't afford it. I just can't imagine spending so much on groceries. That would be great! But completely extravagant for us. I am not intending to put anyone down. If anything I feel like the bad person here, feeding my kids "the junk" from the grocery store. We buy cheap no matter if processed or not, white or wheat, local or non local. The only organic item we eat is our chicken eggs. :( Wish we had the money to buy the best of everything for our kiddos, but my husband is a hard worker and I appreciate what he brings to the table for our family.

I've decided that I'm better off eating non-organic veggies and having those be the foundation of our diet than loading up on meats and starches. Especially since this way of eating is relatively new for us and I still make a lot of meals that my kids don't like. I am finding that I spend less money eating only whole grains, though, because I don't eat as much and what I do eat is nourishing. YMMV.

[Lab1]

I could and have, but no one is happy! I cook from scratch and buy very little processed normally. I do buy no sugar added applesauce in a big jug. To go lower I'm cooking lots of soups and creative meals without the fresh veggies and fruits the kids are used to. I'm cooking a meal for 6 with one small chicken breast. I'm baking lots more breads to stretch meals out. Little or no homemade desserts. Our normal food bill is quite low for our family size already. To go much lower would make us eat less healthy options.

[talltexan]

I think one thing that could help is thinking about how much your meals cost per person. For example, if you have a favorite casserole or something, but it takes lots of meat and cheese and other pricey items, you might be surprised how much you are actually paying per person. Take the time to do the math on a few of your favorite meals, then up the rotation of the less expensive ones.

 

I would also say that baby steps are good. I wouldn't try to cut out 30% all at once. I would cut out 10% the first month, then another 10% the next month, etc.

 

Someone already mentioned http://www.moneysavingmom.com. I would second the recommendation to go check out her site. She has a "31 Days to a Better Grocery Budget" series that might help. I do think she eats more "junk" than I am comfortable with, but she still gives good ideas and really knows how the grocery store sales work!

[Lab1]

We love Bountiful baskets! Its great to add fresh variety to our diet and you get a lot for your money!

[Mommyof4ks]

Personally, no. We are a family of five eating most organic, and our budget is $600 a month.

[kwickimom]

I am starting to feel bad reading all these comments. Do we really need to feed our kids organic for them to grow well and be healthy? Yes, obviously it is better. If you can't afford it though, you can't afford it. I just can't imagine spending so much on groceries. That would be great! But completely extravagant for us. I am not intending to put anyone down. If anything I feel like the bad person here, feeding my kids "the junk" from the grocery store. We buy cheap no matter if processed or not, white or wheat, local or non local. The only organic item we eat is our chicken eggs. :( Wish we had the money to buy the best of everything for our kiddos, but my husband is a hard worker and I appreciate what he brings to the table for our family.

 

 

 

We eat pretty healthy and I do not buy organic and I do not feel the need to. Plenty of people are healthy and living long lives and are not eating organic. You do the best that you can do. We eat mostly venison that we process ourselves, turkey from ones we raise, and fresh fish we catch. Our chickens were costing too much and so we are back to store bought eggs. Everythign else we eat is non-organic.

 

Aside from me needing to lose some more weight all of us are healthy and happy :001_smile:

 

We spend about $400-$500 a month for a family of 5. This includes paper products/household items too. I want to lower that and get back into couponing.

[nova147]

I am starting to feel bad reading all these comments. Do we really need to feed our kids organic for them to grow well and be healthy? Yes, obviously it is better. If you can't afford it though, you can't afford it. I just can't imagine spending so much on groceries. That would be great! But completely extravagant for us. I am not intending to put anyone down. If anything I feel like the bad person here, feeding my kids "the junk" from the grocery store. We buy cheap no matter if processed or not, white or wheat, local or non local. The only organic item we eat is our chicken eggs. :( Wish we had the money to buy the best of everything for our kiddos, but my husband is a hard worker and I appreciate what he brings to the table for our family.

 

:iagree: I felt guilty reading this thread too. We don't do organic because we can't afford it. But I don't like the implication that means I feed my kids junk.

[HSMom2One]

That's pretty much what we've already done due to dh's seasonal lay offs and a final job loss this past winter. Right now while he's retraining and back in school (while we're depending on unemployment benefits), we have a monthly food budget of $400 for 4 people.

 

We've cut back on meat for one thing, eating smaller portions than ever before and having meatless meals at least 1-2 times per week. We're eating more whole grains, nuts, tofu and legumes and thankfully these things are less expensive than all of the meat we used to buy. What meat we do buy is most often what's on sale that week. We also use leftovers for breakfast or lunch the next day.

 

We still buy local produce as much as possible, but we gave up our CSA share and the organic veggies we were buying. I really miss all that, but when it comes down to it we have no choice.

 

We avoid buying prepared foods and stick with fresh foods made from scratch. We drink more water and hardly any juice and pop, although I do brew tea for both hot and iced tea drinks. I've personally cut back on the amount of milk I drink and ice cream I eat. This is all better for me anyway.

 

There are ways to cut back and save a lot of money. You just have to plan really well and be willing to sacrifice here and there.

 

Blessings,

Lucinda

[Sevilla]

Nope, we just increased our grocery budget as we started eating more paleo/primal which means no/low grains and no/low beans as protein sources. Plus with my being pregnant I am eating more to help grow the baby.

 

That said, we rarely eat out so I'm ok with a higher grocery budget since restaurants aren't getting our $$.

[J-rap]

Yes, I know we could. When our kids were all young we were on a very tight budget. I tried to never go over $50/week (not including milk, which we got separately) for our family of 7, and I became a very frugal and wise shopper. :) We ate lots of beans, but fortunately my kids loved them!

 

Now we spend much more, and there are less of us home. I don't often take the time to cook beans ahead of time, etc. I know I could save a lot more if I took the time.

[alpidarkomama]

One way I'm pretty sure most people can slash their budget by 30% is to only buy 1-ingredient items, with a few 2- or 3-ingredient exceptions. We make virtually everything ourselves or do without. We eat a lot of legumes and whole grains. We also only have meat 2x/week.

 

We keep kosher, so we also can't just buy the cheapest products, but I was able to slash our budget by at least 30% when we switched to doing this. Pretty much, either I make it or we do without.

[cjzimmer1]

:iagree: I felt guilty reading this thread too. We don't do organic because we can't afford it. But I don't like the implication that means I feed my kids junk.

 

I know everyone has different reasons for the foods they choose. I certainly don't mean to imply that others are eating junk because they choose something different than I do. The healthy versions I've chosen aren't really chosen because I'm worried about what I'm feeding my kids.

 

For instance, my hubby has high cholesterol and a strong family history of heart disease but he has has had negative side effects from the cholesterol lowering medicines he has tried. So I have modified our diet to help reduce his fat intake. So we have chosen grassfed over traditional grain fed because it is better for him. It would be even better if we eliminate beef, however, I have iron absorbtion issues and regularly eating beef help my stores from getting too low and I'm not willing to make 2 meals to meet our different needs. Grassfed is the compromise. I'm not saying the grain fed is junk just that grassfed is better for our needs.

 

Whole grains: since I was a little kid I've always preferred the taste of whole wheat bread, brown rice etc over the white versions. However, my dad hated the brown versions and so we always had white everything. It was a special treat when I was a child to have brown rice. Since I'm the cook I tend to make stuff I like and since I can get brown rice cheaper than white and other whole grains for not much more than the white versions I do. Yes the whole grain versions are healthier but my motivating reason is that I like the taste better.

 

My parents were produce farmers when I grew up. We canned/froze/dried everything we had left over from our sales. I've always had fresh fruits/veggies as a normal part of my diet. I can't imagine buying canned tomatoes because they taste funny to me. Frozen strawberries are always white inside so I pick and freeze my own so that I know they are fully ripe etc.

 

I don't intentionally buy organics but because I buy in bulk, I often find that the organics are cheaper than buying nonorganics in the store.

 

So while my food choices do tend toward more natural foods, my choices are based more on my upbringing and taste buds and less on the perceived health value of it.

 

So do what you have to to make keep your family fed and happy and don't worry about what others do or say.

[AuntieM]

I couldn't. It's already as slim as I can get it and keep my kids fed.

[Tammyla]

I'd say no, not without some serious cutting. Prices keep going up, and I keep trying to keep up by stretching every dollar I can.

 

In all honesty, I think our budget will have to go up another 30% this year, if prices keep skyrocketing.:confused: I'm running out of ideas other than cutting and serving more junk.

[alpidarkomama]

Our chickens were costing too much and so we are back to store bought eggs.

 

My DH jokes about selling our chickens' eggs and buying grocery eggs. :) Actually, we figured the cost of our eggs is about $0.12 each, based on the average egg-laying amount of a chicken's lifetime + their retirement benefits. :D

 

We feed them lots of table scraps (we scrape our plates onto the chicken plate in the middle of the table at every meal). We also have plenty of edible weeds in the yard, and they get all the bolted greens or anything else past its prime. We cut our chicken feed costs in half this way, and they're still getting a really good diet since most of the food we scrape is great food for them too. :)

[alpidarkomama]

We have fun adding up the costs of homemade items. I figured out that our homemade veggie burgers are only $0.35 each, including the bun and all the fixings. So - math time - I have the kids add up the cost of our dinner, the cost of buying frozen veggie burgers, then the cost of eating the same meal in a restaurant. BIG EYES! :)

[Jpoy85]

No we couldnt cut it any lower, its already pretty low.

[Audrey]

We have fun adding up the costs of homemade items. I figured out that our homemade veggie burgers are only $0.35 each, including the bun and all the fixings. So - math time - I have the kids add up the cost of our dinner, the cost of buying frozen veggie burgers, then the cost of eating the same meal in a restaurant. BIG EYES! :)

 

 

We do that, too. It's fun! :D

[Laura Corin]

I cut mine by about that much - Husband keeps a household spreadsheet and has been able to see it happening. Things I did:

 

- only bought meat/fish on special offer

- reduced our meat/fish consumption to about three or four nights a week

- bought more beans/pulses

- was more careful about buying fruit/veg in season or on special offer

- bought more frozen veg

- moved from organic to free-range chicken/eggs

 

Laura

[Soror]

I have cut it pretty significantly the last few months and could likely cut another 30% but that would mean going to a very rice heavy diet (as we are gf that leaves rice as the cheapest grain) which doesn't make me feel very good at all.

Edited May 11, 2012 by soror