Things that have gone up in price so much, you just had to reluctantly stop buying/using

[Indigo Blue]

I love  Cetaphil Stressed Skin Restoraderm body wash. I paid 12.00 for some when I first discovered it maybe 18 months ago. Now, it is 18.00 for a 10 oz bottle! I think I’ll go back to Dove Bars unscented when it runs out. 
 

I wish I could convince Dh to stop drinking milk! He never eats dry cereal. I think he would be better off just drinking water, and it would save so much money. It’s 9.00 per gallon for Organic Valley. A bit less for store brand organic. 
 

Have you been squeezed out of a favorite item that has just gone up too much?

[Amy in NH]

We never bought organic milk because we couldn't afford it.  I'd prefer to buy local, but it's never been in our price range.  There's always been a balance between healthy & moral vs. affordable.

[Katy]

DH eats WAY less meat than he used to. At one point he was on an All-Ribeye carnivore trial that I hated but tried to keep my mouth shut about. 

[Indigo Blue]

7 minutes ago, Amy in NH said:

We never bought organic milk because we couldn't afford it.  I'd prefer to buy local, but it's never been in our price range.  There's always been a balance between healthy & moral vs. affordable.

Yeah, I get that. We don’t buy very much meat at all, (I don’t eat it) so we save in other areas. If I’m pressed to buy milk, I prefer it to be organic. It’s always been high, but now its worse. I am not happy paying that much for it, but Dh wants me to buy it. Maybe I could convince him to be satisfied with just a half gallon.

[Indigo Blue]

6 minutes ago, Katy said:

DH eats WAY less meat than he used to. At one point he was on an All-Ribeye carnivore trial that I hated but tried to keep my mouth shut about. 

Same! Dh has significantly reduced his meat intake. It just happened gradually. He doesn’t complain, so I’m happy. 

[cjzimmer1]

Nearly all convenience foods.  chips, premade meals, chopped lettuces (although to be honest even heads are too pricey so I've been growing my own), frozen pizzas, premade snacks etc.  Pretty much all of it has gone out the window.  I do buy a couple of shares from Ruby's Pantry each month (food manufacturers donate their extras and the Ruby's creates bundles and you pay a small amount for a share to cover their storage and gas costs, a share cost $25 but has a typically retail value of over $100 - even though most of the items I would never pay their retail value for it's still a good deal).  I buy a half of beef and half of pig from my local farmer and then if I find a great deal on chicken we have that otherwise it's just beef and pork.  But most of our veggies and fruit are things I can buy in bulk in the summer and process for long term storage.  My grocery bills are actually quite low right now because most everything is too expensive to buy so I just don't buy anything.  Trade off is come this summer I will have to put in some serious effort of growing, harvesting, canning, freezing and dehydrating to bring the supplies back up. 

[TheReader]

a lot less meat, and a lot less ground beef/more ground chicken instead, for starters. And on sale meat, thanks to the deep freeze. 

We renewed our Costco membership so we could get a few things for less rather than give them up -- better price on the limited ground beef we do get, Gatorades, granola bars, and the allergen-light fruit snacks that work for my classes, among other things. 

We've switched to getting more things on Amazon Subscribe & Save, too, partly to deal with the scarcity, and partly for the savings. 

Off brand sodas, on sale, vs. name brands on sale. (we limit them anyway, but do get them for some events). 

Fortunately we haven't had to totally drop anything, but we're certainly making adjustments.

[prairiewindmomma]

We also went from liquid Cetaphil > dove unscented bars.  We normally have four bottles of Cetaphil going in the house because so many of us have eczema. Even the store brand generic Cetaphil is up considerably, or a couple of brands have ingredients we are allergic to.  We have had to increase our moisturizing with the switch, fwiw, if you need to factor that in to your $ analysis.

All pre-packaged snacks are gone. The only snack packaged type item we buy are generic crackers which are paired with veg and fruit and cheese cubes as part of a packed lunch.  I especially lament the loss of peanut butter Clif bars as it was something I kept in my purse to deal with hypoglycemic episodes. If I bought a box of 12 clif bars pre-pandemic, it worked out to <$1/bar. Now it's about $1.50/bar.  We've replaced snacking with bulk popcorn, which we make in the microwave in a reusable silicon popcorn bowl

All bagged cereal is gone. We have bulk oatmeal instead.

Tillamook cheese---we only use a bit of feta or parmesan for taste in a couple of dishes anymore.  We occasionally do cheese cubes for one kid as part of a packed lunch, but that kid has food issues. He buys generic cheese for himself.

Deli lunch meat--we used to buy preservative free versions of this for easy packed lunches, no more.

flavored seltzer water

no more chocolate--I'm really kind of mad about this one

I made all of the above choices to prioritize more nutritious ones instead. I still buy a variety of fruits and veg and meat. We've started phasing out the meat and are moving towards legumes in their place, but we have some dietary things we are sorting out. My shopping cart is plainer than my great-grandmother's was.  (I know, I used to help her with her shopping.)

Just plain cutting back:

Harney Earl Grey Supreme to Stash teas (a local brand where I can catch overstock sales)

Coava and Stumptown Coffee (local coffee) to Kirkland Signature Organic coffee (and when my freezer stash is gone, I'll probably give up my morning coffee if inflation doesn't slow)

no more hobby spending--crafts, makeup, electronics etc., even for the kids

butter--I give serious pause to any dish that requires more than 1/4 stick of butter. Butter is now at least $1/stick, and closer to $1.75/stick if I don't catch a sale ($15.40USD/kilo for non-US folks). 

I'm experimenting with trying alternatives on a lot of other things. We've hit the point where some expensive things are just necessary because going without them leads to even more expensive problems, and that's seriously frustrating. 

 

Edited March 16, 2023 by prairiewindmomma

[Brittany1116]

My husband has a daily Coke. They have more than doubled in price and I wish he'd quit. 

We have dropped our number/variety of organics. I still buy organic milk, and grassfed organic beef more often than not. Everything else organic is on case by case basis- is it on sale? Is it within 10% of conventional? Etc. 

[Annie G]

I use 2 bottles a year of my favorite shampoo, and last bought it in January 2022. I know how much it was since I buy it on Amazon. It is now exactly twice as much as before….$38 a bottle. Checked Ulta and it’s even more there. so no more of my favorite shampoo. 
Ditto with my favorite orange juice, Natalie’s. It’s almost double what it was last year. 
 Neither are essential, but I did love them. 

[Faith-manor]

Restaurant food. I used to like supporting local places, but the prices have gone up almost triple. With increases in grocery prices, a near doubling of the winter propane bill which we have been offsetting with wood, and my college classes, it is not wise to throw money into eating out. We travel with a cooler and food bag now, and only buy coffee on the road.

Of course my fabric habit doesn't help. But we have two new babies in the family, and sewing for them means more to me than eating out.

I also will not be buying the moisturizing shampoo and conditioner that my hair stylist wants me to use. It has more than doubled in price.

[Kassia]

Eggs for me.  I drink a lot of diet soda and feel guilty because of the price increase but I can't give it up.  Other things I have cut back on but haven't given up completely.  And I watch carefully for any deals and stock up if there is a price drop.

[prairiewindmomma]

Offering likes in solidarity, not because I am glad any of us are having to cut back on things….

[Brittany1116]

36 minutes ago, Faith-manor said:

Restaurant food. I used to like supporting local places, but the prices have gone up almost triple. With increases in grocery prices, a near doubling of the winter propane bill which we have been offsetting with wood, and my college classes, it is not wise to throw money into eating out. We travel with a cooler and food bag now, and only buy coffee on the road.

Of course my fabric habit doesn't help. But we have two new babies in the family, and sewing for them means more to me than eating out.

I also will not be buying the moisturizing shampoo and conditioner that my hair stylist wants me to use. It has more than doubled in price.

Idk what one you use, but Ulta does litre sales once or twice a year. Might be worth watching. 

[Mrs Tiggywinkle Again]

My favorite shampoo and eating out.  I want to support local businesses but I can’t pay the prices anymore.

We buy our eggs, milk and beef/pork direct from the farmers, and those costs haven’t quite skyrocketed yet. We’re about due for another 1/4 beef though and I assume it’s gone way up. Everything else we’re holding steady on the prices.  Benefits of buying a house on a working farm.

[JustEm]

 Dh's daily can of soda is probably the only thing we've stopped buying. I gave him the option to get store brand and he opted for no soda at all. 

Other than that I simply plan meals and purchases around sales more heavily. We've never been big into prepared snacks or freezer meals. 

 

[HomeAgain]

I haven't had a steak in over a year.  We added more vegetarian meals to our rotation and cut down on meat, but steak is the one thing we have cut out entirely.

We switched to cheaper shampoo (but found we like it better, so it's a win) and made smaller cuts here and there.  I do miss a good steak, though.

[math teacher]

I walk by and look at the price of ice cream, and most of the time do not pick it up. It's not good for me anyway. Same goes for cookies. 

[gstharr]

15 minutes ago, hjffkj said:

 Dh's daily can of soda is probably the only thing we've stopped buying. I gave him the option to get store brand and he opted for no soda at all.

 

I only drink store brand diet cola.  Now,  I have to stock up when they are available because the shelves empty fast.

 

 

[fairfarmhand]

2 hours ago, Indigo Blue said:

I love  Cetaphil Stressed Skin Restoraderm body wash. I paid 12.00 for some when I first discovered it maybe 18 months ago. Now, it is 18.00 for a 10 oz bottle! I think I’ll go back to Dove Bars unscented when it runs out. 
 

I wish I could convince Dh to stop drinking milk! He never eats dry cereal. I think he would be better off just drinking water, and it would save so much money. It’s 9.00 per gallon for Organic Valley. A bit less for store brand organic. 
 

Have you been squeezed out of a favorite item that has just gone up too much?

I feel significantly less bad about my $5 (when calculated) milk from my own cow. All these years, I've thought I was being frivolous and a bit wasteful. Guess not.

[KatieJ]

Amway laundry detergent. I have used it for over 40 years. Between cost increases,  no scent type discontinued, increase and shipping charges , I just couldn’t do it anymore. 😐

[marbel]

No steak or other nicer cuts of meat here either, just ground beef and the occasional chuck roast. 

We are just recently coming out of a spell of un/underemployment so we had cut back on a lot of things previously. I buy Costco's house brand shampoo, go to a cheap haircut place, shop as much as possible at Aldi, etc. So there are not many things I have felt the need to cut now, because they were already cut. 

[fairfarmhand]

3 minutes ago, marbel said:

No steak or other nicer cuts of meat here either, just ground beef and the occasional chuck roast. 

We are just recently coming out of a spell of un/underemployment so we had cut back on a lot of things previously. I buy Costco's house brand shampoo, go to a cheap haircut place, shop as much as possible at Aldi, etc. So there are not many things I have felt the need to cut now, because they were already cut. 

I paid $12 for a less than 2 lb roast a few weeks back. Will be glad when we get our steers processed so that we don't have to buy store meat. 

I promise you guys, farmers arent' making much on beef either. Nor is the feed store lady. I don't know who but someone is making out like a bandit. It's not me though!

[Faith-manor]

50 minutes ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

My favorite shampoo and eating out.  I want to support local businesses but I can’t pay the prices anymore.

We buy our eggs, milk and beef/pork direct from the farmers, and those costs haven’t quite skyrocketed yet. We’re about due for another 1/4 beef though and I assume it’s gone way up. Everything else we’re holding steady on the prices.  Benefits of buying a house on a working farm.

We buy from a local farmer as well. The price is way better than the markets, and the beef and chicken are from very well cared for, ethically raised animals. But we are cutting back a lot. I will get 12 whole roasters for each of our adult kids, and 13 for us, but instead of a half beef, we will get a quarter in mostly ground beef and share that among the kids. Mark and I are just getting a beef bundle which is about 30 lbs of lb packs ground beef, and five packages of stew beef for $140. I can't believe the price had stayed this low. Eggs have dropped in price recently so I am trying to make that a primary protein source for Mark and I.

[Faith-manor]

I also need to say that the price has nearly doubled on all fresh produce this year, as well as all tomato based canned/jars products. The quality has gone down so much that it isn't worth buying fresh produce here except from the Mennonite bulk food store that has several local farmers with greenhouses. In the supermarkets all the carrot bags are old, potatoes are sprouting and soft or rotten in the center, lettuce and other greens and herbs are slimy, mushrooms and berries have mold. It is gross.

I am going to try to grow 2 bushels of tomatoes and buy one bushel from my favorite local veggie farmer, and can salsa, taco sauce, and pasta sauce for all of my adult kids. I am putting in 72 green bean plants to can and freeze green beans for everyone, enough broccoli to freeze for each household, and am heading to u-pick berry farms to pick and freeze/dehydrate berries for all. I will harvest and dehydrate again from our apples trees. Last year I did not even come close to harvesting all the apples. So if they produce like that again, I plan on making pint jars of applesauce, at least 12 per household, and last year I dehydrated 28 quarts of apples and my hope is to double that. I am exhausted just thinking about it.  But determined. Oh, and a bushel of sweetcorn for each kid as well. The corn comes on at the same time as the tomatoes and green beans so I may just collapse. At least the berries are more spread out.

I sat down and figured out how large and successful of a garden I would need to provide a year's worth of veggies for each household, and well, let me just say that it was a scary, terrifying amount of gardening.

[happi duck]

Dh lives on Grape Nuts cereal.  That tiny box was $6.79 today!

[Brittany1116]

I forgot about Triscuits. I only buy them about 3 times a year. Now there is a 7 or 8 oz box that is higher in price than the big Family Size box ever was. 

[Brittany1116]

1 hour ago, Faith-manor said:

We buy from a local farmer as well. The price is way better than the markets, and the beef and chicken are from very well cared for, ethically raised animals. But we are cutting back a lot. I will get 12 whole roasters for each of our adult kids, and 13 for us, but instead of a half beef, we will get a quarter in mostly ground beef and share that among the kids. Mark and I are just getting a beef bundle which is about 30 lbs of lb packs ground beef, and five packages of stew beef for $140. I can't believe the price had stayed this low. Eggs have dropped in price recently so I am trying to make that a primary protein source for Mark and I.

That is a good price on your beef!

[Faith-manor]

1 hour ago, fairfarmhand said:

I paid $12 for a less than 2 lb roast a few weeks back. Will be glad when we get our steers processed so that we don't have to buy store meat. 

I promise you guys, farmers arent' making much on beef either. Nor is the feed store lady. I don't know who but someone is making out like a bandit. It's not me though!

Absolutely agreed! I would pay more for our meat bundles, but when I talk to the gal, she just keeps quoting that price. 

[Faith-manor]

5 minutes ago, Brittany1116 said:

That is a good price on your beef!

Absolutely agree. I am not sure why it is that low other than maybe there are a lot of beef ranchers selling out. 

[Shoeless]

Well, we did a big diet overhaul during 2020-2021, so there isn't a lot of processed stuff left to cut out.  I did start using flax eggs and coconut oil in baking, rather than the normal stuff.  I wish DH would give up deli meat and diet sodas. Those are expensive. He has cut back on diet sodas, which is good, and he gave up eating $$$ beef jerky. 

I restarted my hydroponic gardens to grow greens and tomatoes at home. It really doesn't save very much money, but it's a way to increase the quality of what we eat without a big jump in the budget.  The quality of produce at the store has been iffy lately. I haven't seen big jumps in produce cost here (Texas), but I'm guessing that is because it doesn't have to be shipped so far. I'm actually paying less for broccoli and a few other things today than I did 3 years ago. 

Our family of 3 cannot get through a big tub of greens from the grocery fast enough before it goes slimey. There's less waste when I grow at home and the quality is much better. 

Edited March 17, 2023 by Shoeless

[HomeAgain]

Oh, I just thought of another.  A-1 Steak Sauce was over $9 at the grocery store this week!  We, uh, opted not to grab the bottle for our meatloaf.

I've noticed a lot more 1 liter bottles of soda on the shelves.  Same height as the 2 liters, just skinnier, and costing what a 2 liter used to.

[Brittany1116]

34 minutes ago, HomeAgain said:

Oh, I just thought of another.  A-1 Steak Sauce was over $9 at the grocery store this week!  We, uh, opted not to grab the bottle for our meatloaf.

I've noticed a lot more 1 liter bottles of soda on the shelves.  Same height as the 2 liters, just skinnier, and costing what a 2 liter used to.

Wow! I put the A1 back when it got close to $7. I'll have to be watching it for a bogo deal. $9 is wild.

Agree on sodas. Suddenly every brand has a 1L for just under $2. 

[Lecka]

We have made some changes.  
 

We are buying 2-Liter sodas now instead of cans.  They aren’t 2-Liters, they are smaller, but they are working well for us and saving money, they are a treat and aren’t going flat.  
 

I have gotten a really good pinto bean recipe and we use it for nachos and burritos.  I used to use ground beef for Mexican-style foods.  
 

[Tap]

One of the biggest things for me, is eating out. We have a taco place around me, that is fairly authentic and there are probably 6 locations in my town. I used to buy 4 chicken street tacos for $10, add a drink for $2 and it was easily under $15 with tax. I went the other day, and it was $20! For 4 little street tacos and a coke! 25% more. Nope! Not gunna do it! It is good, real food. I don't mind paying a bit for it, but for a cup of chicken, 4 tortillas and some onion/cilantro mix.and a soda....$20....nope!

 

This isn't hardly a sit down place. They have seats at a few locations, but they are below fast-food standards. This is a kiosk or strip mall type place, in an old, abandoned AW or similar, that you don't want to look too close at the trash in the back. 

[Clarita]

We've had to cut back on eating out. Many places nearby charging 18% built-in gratuity it just 😲.

[Shoeless]

Oh, boxed cereal. I keep a box of Cheerios in the pantry as a "just in case" thing.  I usually make a loaf of banana bread for DS14's breakfast every week, but every once in a while, I flake out and he hits up the cereal instead. 

It's $6+ a box now and that box lasts 3, maybe 4 days? vs the banana bread which is maybe $1.50 for the week. 

I'm a lot more motivated to make bread every week!

[Condessa]

I quit buying paper towels, Lysol cleaning wipes, windex, and liquid dishwasher soap.  Reusable cloths, generic versions of cleaners, and the powdered dishwasher soap get things just as clean.

 I also quit buying cereal, granola, granola bars, and eggs.  Oatmeal and homemade Greek yogurt and granola for breakfast.  I started making homemade granola bars a few months ago to save money, and then when dh brought home a box of (previously favorite) granola bars, no one wanted to eat them.  They prefer mine.

Edited March 17, 2023 by Condessa

[Eos]

Eating out, meat especially chicken, organic tortilla chips (which were our only store-bought snack food,) wine.  We only have orange juice in the house when dd is here for diabetic rescue, otherwise too expensive.

Organic chicken feed. We eat a lot of eggs, any time of day. They are cheap delicious protein that use up our kitchen scraps, but I wish I could still afford the organic feed.  My kids won't let me raise and slaughter meat hens.

Edited March 17, 2023 by Eos

[Faith-manor]

13 hours ago, Brittany1116 said:

Idk what one you use, but Ulta does litre sales once or twice a year. Might be worth watching. 

If I am ever near one, I can check. We live about two hours from an Ulta.

[QueenCat]

15 hours ago, Kassia said:

Eggs for me.  I drink a lot of diet soda and feel guilty because of the price increase but I can't give it up.  Other things I have cut back on but haven't given up completely.  And I watch carefully for any deals and stock up if there is a price drop.

I'm with you on the diet soda... It's my only caffeine & I'm not giving it up. Eggs have dropped down to $2.09/dozen here. Hopefully, you'll see a drop where you live soon.

[Spryte]

Our kids have big food allergies and I have celiac, so our foods are either whole ingredients or very specific branded items. We have cut down on the premade allergy safe lunchbox type items that we used to keep on hand. And things like allergy safe cookies and treats.

I do order direct from a few companies — things like bread and occasional treats, and we bury them in the freezer to be pulled out on special occasions.

We have cut down on heavy cream for the coffee.

DH and I switched from our Camano Island Roaster subscription to Mayorga from Costco.

I tried a different shampoo/conditioner, but alas — my hair falls out and I will happily skip something else to keep my hair.

We had planned on having some work done on our property, but whoa have prices climbed! So we cut down our plan and are doing about a quarter of it, and working on ways to do it for even less.

 

 

[ScoutTN]

Eating out!

Grass fed butter

We buy pastured eggs less often. They are not so steep from our CSA farmer, so we’ll up our purchases when the CSA begins again in May.

We still buy most of our pork and beef and some chx locally. Prices are similar to the store, for a far better product. We do eat less meat than we did a few years ago. We get a gallon of raw milk a week for $7. 

We have never bought many processed or convenience foods. 

Carbs are cheap, but I must eat low carb and Dh chooses to. Casseroles with rice or pasta would stretch our dollars, but when half of us cannot eat them, they are not super practical. 
 

Mostly the shift has been in my time grocery shopping. More huntings for sales and meal planning around loss leaders. 

[marbel]

4 minutes ago, ScoutTN said:

Mostly the shift has been in my time grocery shopping. More huntings for sales and meal planning around loss leaders. 

Oh yeah. I am so tired of going from store to store to get what I need at a decent price. And I'm aware that driving around has a cost too, but sometimes it just has to happen. And figuring out what to eat out of all that. I've been doing it for a long time so I should be used to it, but I still miss the days when I didn't have to pay such close attention.

[Jaybee]

Eating out. Even the cheaper fast food places are getting expensive. 

I'm buying less meat and fish. Healthier in some ways, but I really would like to have the fish.

I used to keep paper plates on hand, but haven't in quite a few months.

Friday night is pizza night here. I've been making them myself, which doesn't save a ton because cheese is expensive, but it's something. Granted, they are much healthier and tastier, but sometimes I want a night off.

ETA: I'm buying cheaper coffee. I rarely drink coffee shop coffee, and usually have gift cards for that, but I'm talking about coffee at home.

Edited March 17, 2023 by Jaybee

[73349]

We switched from a locally made liquid soap to one I can buy cheaper.

I took a break from coffee last month rather than downgrade to one that wasn't fair trade, partly because the price of plant milk to put in it has gone up.

Some convenience lunches for DS have gone from once every week or two to once every month or two. ($10/serving potstickers for just him!; $8/two servings cauliflower bites for both of us; anything that involves almond flour tortillas, which are now $1.25 each.) Beans and rice for lunch it is.

We already only eat meat about one night a week (some weeks a second occasion at lunch) and only get restaurant food about once a month; I don't plan to eliminate those right now.

 

[ScoutTN]

9 minutes ago, marbel said:

Oh yeah. I am so tired of going from store to store to get what I need at a decent price. And I'm aware that driving around has a cost too, but sometimes it just has to happen. And figuring out what to eat out of all that. I've been doing it for a long time so I should be used to it, but I still miss the days when I didn't have to pay such close attention.

I do have three groceries within 1.5 miles of my house, so that helps with the driving.

Interestingly, some of my best grocery deals come at Publix, which is quite expensive compared to my usual Walmart Neighborhood Market or Aldi. BOGO is good when they have what you want. Similar sales at Whole Foods occasionally. 

[prairiewindmomma]

2 hours ago, Faith-manor said:

If I am ever near one, I can check. We live about two hours from an Ulta.

Ulta has free shipping for orders over $35. You can check their website for brands. 
 

[cintinative]

We were already struggling with the grocery budget before the prices went up, so I am even more careful with meat purchases now.  I used to be able to buy chuck roast every now and then but now it's rare that even the sale prices are good enough for me to justify.  

I have cut back on eggs--I used to often eat them for lunch, but now I don't because they are so expensive still.

We use a lot of butter and it is $$$ right now.  I really don't get how it went from $2 to $5, but it did.  

I used to buy the pasta with additional fiber for those who can eat gluten--now I just buy the cheapest pasta I can find (which is still expensive to me).

Sometimes I just shake my head because I don't get why something is SO much more expensive.  Grain related things, yes, eggs, yes, but soda?  Soy sauce? Why?

[Faith-manor]

I thought of one more thing, seafood. Both elderly moms' doctors adamantly want them consuming fish, fin fish. My mom, in particular, had a low grocery budget. So we normally provide our of pocket, fish one night a week for both of them. They do not like tilapia, so we usually do perch, cod, or salmon. Those have gone up quite a bit. Not doubled in price, but definitely $2-5 more per lb depending on the species. We are still buying it for them, and they buy enough to have one more meal per week, but they are squawking about it so I suspect we will have to supplement more. I am encouraging tuna for lunch. I was going to buy canned salmon and make them some salmon patties for sandwiches, but that has also gone up a lot, and when I went to two different stores, they had none.

Dh loves my clam chowder, but at $4 a can for minced clams, and $4 a jar for clam juice, a small pot of seafood soup is not cheap, so he isn't getting it very often at all.

Given how fast the oceans are warming, this is going to keep getting worse.