I'm on $120 per week budget for food.

[sassyshell]

I need some help, since I been struggling to buy groceries. I got $120 per week for grocery shopping. Once I get to the check-out I always seem to go over the amount and have to take some of the items back. Which realistically leaves us with hardly any food. I always buy my pets food first and then ours.

I need advice on how to do a cheap shopping list and menu plans. Thanks in advance!

[Palooka]

How many is in the family?

[sassyshell]

There is just hubby and I. We also have 1 medium size dog and 1 cat.

[frugalfranny]

Yes - how many are you cooking for on this amt?

You didn't give too many details to work with but my first suggestion is CUT THE MEAT........not completely, but how much are you spending on meat? Are you cooking one meal then 'expanding' it into something else the next day? How many 'convenience foods' are you buying? They are SUPER pricey!

We need grainlady here............she can put you on track!!

[Palooka]

There is just hubby and I. We also have 1 medium size dog and 1 cat.

Well the animals need to eat well too, but I see 120 a week easily for good food.

We can do under this a week for a family of five. Yes some is coming and going too. I'm a vegetarian but I don't always agree that it keeps the budget down lower though.

What would be your simple plan that you normally eat? Do you have an Aldis or use coupons?

I agree with ff, Grainlady is the master here about these kinds of subjects and I am sure she will be here to give you some great advice.

[ladykemma2]

cook from scratch, within reason
plan your meals using stuff already in the house, make a list
do intentional leftovers for lunch
cascading meals: chicken for sunday, chicken tacos for monday, chicken soup for tuesday...

shop with a calculator to keep a running total
meat twice a week.

[ladytoysdream]

Any chance you might give us some kind of list of what you buy ,so suggestions could be made where you might want to cut.

Try different stores, different brand names, different menus, more scratch cooking, coupons, less snacks, different cuts of meat, look for more sales, different brands for the pets. Etc.

[Grainlady]

My first suggestion would be to divide your money into a FOOD ONLY budget, and another amount for non-food items and concentrate on what kind of foods you are purchasing with your food dollars. This will give you an actual amount you are spending on FOOD.

My food budget (2 adults) has been $50/week for many years, and I've built a large amount of food in storage with this amount, including hundreds of pounds of grains/seeds/beans, Emergency Storage Foods (dehydrated/freeze-dried foods in #10 cans), and a well-stocked kitchen pantry. After the first of the year I will be reducing it by 25 percent to $75 every 2 weeks, and my goal is to see if I can't get it down to $25/week. Hubby just had his second significant cut-in-pay this year and 2010 doesn't look too promising.

Quick assessment of your food purchases....

1. Do you purchase individual sized foods or beverages?

When you check the unit prices of individual sizes compared to large sizes that you can divide yourself, you will find you are paying for the convenience, not the food.

-As an example, buy a large jar of applesauce, rather than the snack-size, and use reusable plastic containers for making your own snack-size applesauce for lunches. Freeze them and use them as needed. Better yet, make your own applesauce from those FREE apple slices you dehydrated.

2. Do you purchase a lot of snack food? If so, that may be a place to cut your food budget.

"Snack" foods at our home are dehydrated zucchini slices we grew this summer (we use them like potato chips), dehydrated apple slices (most were made with free-for-the-picking apples), pecans or almonds (purchased in large bags from Sam's Club), air-popped popcorn and fresh fruit/veggies.

3. Are you checking unit prices?

-If you purchase a 5-ounce can of tuna that costs $1.09 a can, you are spending $3.48/POUND for it. If you purchase tuna at 59-cents a can = $1.88/POUND. Either way, they are very expensive when you figure the cost per serving of protein.

-Add a low-costing protein (beans, eggs, etc.) with a high-costing protein to make it go farther (eggs in tuna salad or eggs in salmon patties or salmon loaf, refried beans and ground beef). Adding more carbohydrates (rice, pasta, potatoes) doesn't stretch the protein, it simply adds to the carbohydrates most people already eat too many of.

-Frozen concentrate 100% fruit juices (add your own water) are less expensive per serving than those ready-to-serve juices from the refrigerator case. And MUCH less expensive than individual juice boxes.

4. MEAT - the budget buster!

-Keep meat purchases to $2 or less a pound, OR, $10/week. Check the meat counter for reduced items. I recently purchased a $35 spiral ham reduced to $12.48. It was discounted because the packet of glaze (stuck to the outside of the ham packaging) had leaked. I also had a $2 store coupon for this particular ham, so I paid $10.48 for a $35 ham.

-We have meatless Friday, using low-cost non-meat alternatives - cheese, eggs, beans, etc.

-Low-meat days... (low amounts of meat PLUS low-costing meat alternatives)
*Wednesday - Stir-Fry
*Thursday - International Foods (mixtures of meat and beans often used - Mexican or Italian foods)
*Saturday - Soup and/or Sandwiches
*Sunday - Homemade Pizza or a Dinner Salad

-I mix homemade ground gluten (aka "fake meat") with ground beef or pork. I keep the same flavor, texture, same amount of protein, but cut the cost significantly.

5. Watch those serving sizes.

-Over-eating anything is wasted food dollars.
-Know how many servings of foods you need per day.
-If you eat snacks, make sure they are nutritious and fit into your daily allowance of foods (My Food Pyramid - http://www.mypyramid.gov/)

6. Cook from scratch.

-Purchase INGREDIENTS with which to make meals, rather than relying on someone else to make it for you in the form of convenience foods and highly-processed foods, you will save money. Concentrate your food dollars on ingredients.

-Purchase foods that are high in nutrition. This means more whole foods - grains, beans, fruit, vegetables. Empty calories are generally expensive.

-Make your OWN convenience foods.... These are a few of my favorites that line my shelves. Multi-grain Baking Mix (Bisquick substitute), Multi-grain Pancake Mix, Hot Cocoa Mix, Pudding Mixes, Magic Mix (with which you can make a plethora of things), Gifts-in-a-Jar mixes, frozen Angel Biscuits (heat and serve)...

- Commercial cereal products are a royal rip-off. I make whole-grain cooked cereal (or grain blends) for pennies. I make my own flakes from a wide variety of grains. It's estimated there is 17-cents worth of grain in a box of cereal - you are paying for the convenience, packaging, and advertisement.

7. Don't waste money on foods that have little, or no, redeeming food value.

- Tang may have gone to the moon, but it's food value is ZERO. The same with Crystal Light, Kool-Aid, Soda, junk food...

Hope there is something there that will help you out.

[Trishagirl]

Do you use coupons I do and they really help get organized before you go shopping with a list and stick to it and watch for sales at the stores and stock up when you can.

[MaryCarney]

Many great suggestions, but my first thought would be to take a calculator with you, and keep a running total. This helps you to prioritize as you go! (Full disclosure- I'm usually the lady behind you who gets annoyed when you have to do this with your items in the conveyer )

[gottadance]

Don't buy pet food at the grocer - it's almost always most expensive there. Instead, buy it at Walmart or a pet store when it's on sale and stock up. Also find coupons for the pet food you like.

I shop at a variety of stores for different items - because I know where they're cheapest. I actually created an excel doc listing all of the food items I regularly buy and put the prices in and the name of the store. (I actually went through the store and wrote down prices). This gives me a very good comparison. When I see the cheapest price, I highlight it in yellow. Now it can take a bunch of time running from store to store, but a) I try to do it when I'm passing the store anyway - on my way to or from work and b) I stock up, so I won't have to go back to the store every week.

At our local Dominick's (this may be Safeway in your area), they have a clearance meat section where they sell meat that is about to expire. I've gotten some amazing deals there - then I just freeze it. The clerk told me the best thing is to get there first thing in the morning when they put the meat out so you have the highest selection.

[larabelle]

Great Suggestions...thanks everybody...as I am gleaning from them.

[chevy_chick95]

I agree with grainlady SMS ladyk. Boyfriend and I spend $80 a month on food. Making everything from scratch really adds up. Also buying in bulk. Use cheaper meat- hamburger instead of steak. Whole chicken instead on boneless skinless breasts.

Google cheap meals. I do this provably once a week just to see what else I can find. Also if you want a few websites to checkout let me know. I just can't post them on the boards says they are spam!

Have a rotating menu. I have one set up for a month. Easy cheap filling meals. That way when I go to the grocery store I buy the same stuff every month. Also plan meals around sales flyers. This is how I developed the monthly meal plan. I tracked what was on sale the most in my area and planned my meals around it fir the year. Much easier.

As far as pets like someone said look for coupons. I buy all my dog food for under $2 a year. I hope this helps, if you have more questions please ask we all are trying to lower our grocery bills so there is always something new to learn

[RaineyDaye]

I buy all my dog food for under $2 a year.

chevy_chick95: Please share how you can buy dog food for less then $2 a year!

[frugalfranny]

to take a calculator with you, and keep a running total. This helps you to prioritize as you go! (Full disclosure- I'm usually the lady behind you who gets annoyed when you have to do this with your items in the conveyer )

Cracked me up MC! And if YOU aren't the lady there, then I AM!! And I ALWAYS get behind the one that has 200 coupons to sort out! So if I have coupons I warn the person behind me!!