2011 Grocery Budget Reduction Challenge

[momof2boys2005]

Madhen: I had no idea you had that many birds! It must sound lovely at momof2boys2005's and your place. Nice to hear birds year round.

LOL the finches sound cute and I love the lovebirds but man lovebirds can be LOUD esp if they feel they need out of cage time or food or ummm anything...they have big personalities in a small package!

[arnie]

I am in on this one as well. I am going to shoot for 400 a month for all supplies. I would rather shoot a little high, then cut it back if needed. I have a household of 3 ( DD19 is hardly ever home) so really just me the hubs, and the three kitties. I will include household items and pet food. I may try the coupons again but I found they don't really save me much. I do much better shopping at Aldi, and then hitting WM or Kroger for special items that Aldi doesn't carry.

[peanut]

Grocery shopping for the first two weeks of January tonight.

Total: $70.08CAD

$2.78 1 kg. frozen green beans
$4.98 2 kg. frozen corn
$4.98 2 kg. frozen peas and carrots
$3.49 3 lb. organic yellow potatoes (only small bags they had)
$5.48 5 lbs. Navel oranges
$3.47 1.24 kg. broccoli crowns (cheaper than regular broccoli)
.20 4 plastic bags (needed for garbage anyway)
$2.13 .335 kg. button mushrooms
$4.37 .26 kg. dried cranberries
$2.76 2 kg. fine egg noodles
.50 .13 kg. tomato (1 medium)
$2.69 1 kg. brown sugar
$6.77 1 kg. frozen Atlantic salmon fillets
$3.98 750 gm. currants
$1.08 baking soda
$1.28 19 oz. tin Italian stewed tomatoes (the only type of 19 oz. can of tomatoes they had!)
$1.98 500 ml. ketchup
$3.36 1 litre Rice Dream milk
$4.98 2 750ml 2% yogurt
$4.49 doz. free range eggs
$3.99 2 large tubes Sensodyne (a sale!)

[AspiringToBeFrugal]

I'm in too! I fell off the wagon a lot last year and have the bumps to prove it! SO...I'm aiming for $300 a month this year (averages to $75/week) which includes EVERYTHING--HBA, food, diapers, etc.

I'm going to really work on becoming a better couponer and menu planner so those skills will go hand-in-hand with my desire to spend less in this budget area.

[EmilyD]

Ok ... I am in.

My current "grocery" budget is $200.00 per paycheck (every 2 weeks).

I am going to stick to that for the month of Jan to see what I am spending where.

I know at this time per pay period:

1 cat food $5.00
1 dog food $5.00
1 container litter $5.00
$15.00 for pet needs

Toilet paper $6.00
Kleenex $3.00
Paper towels $2.00
Straws (mo) $1.00
Trash bags $3.00
$15.00 paper and plastic products (approximately)

Soap $3.00
Soda $3.00
Oxyclean $3.00
Borax $3.00
Dryer clothes $3.00
$15.00 Laundry soap and products (approximately)

So $45.00 already gone and no food LOL

dh eats frozen meals so that is about $45.00 per pay period plus his coffee and lunch stuff so I will say about $60.00 altogether. So that leaves me $95.00 for all my food and any personal care that needs to be bought ... cutting out the snacks will help the bill alot.

[momof2boys2005]

Grocery shopping for the first two weeks of January tonight.

Total: $70.08CAD

$2.78 1 kg. frozen green beans
$4.98 2 kg. frozen corn
$4.98 2 kg. frozen peas and carrots
$3.49 3 lb. organic yellow potatoes (only small bags they had)
$5.48 5 lbs. Navel oranges
$3.47 1.24 kg. broccoli crowns (cheaper than regular broccoli)
.20 4 plastic bags (needed for garbage anyway)
$2.13 .335 kg. button mushrooms
$4.37 .26 kg. dried cranberries
$2.76 2 kg. fine egg noodles
.50 .13 kg. tomato (1 medium)
$2.69 1 kg. brown sugar
$6.77 1 kg. frozen Atlantic salmon fillets
$3.98 750 gm. currants
$1.08 baking soda
$1.28 19 oz. tin Italian stewed tomatoes (the only type of 19 oz. can of tomatoes they had!)
$1.98 500 ml. ketchup
$3.36 1 litre Rice Dream milk
$4.98 2 750ml 2% yogurt
$4.49 doz. free range eggs
$3.99 2 large tubes Sensodyne (a sale!)

Looking good! Curious as to which store you shop at...

[alotofgooddeals]

no money right now as i have a house payment due the 13th...of 487.....and that has to be paid above and beyond anything else as this is a payment arrangement we made to catch up the deliquency...I told dh this has to be paid before anything else....I will have to buy some groceries for the kids but him and i well ah...we will eat their leftovers....or something in the cupboards that is not our favorite....so my first shopping trip will be the 12th....and still trying to decide whether to go weekly bi weekly or monthly...any ideas....

[krbshappy71]

no money right now as i have a house payment due the 13th...of 487.....and that has to be paid above and beyond anything else as this is a payment arrangement we made to catch up the deliquency...I told dh this has to be paid before anything else....I will have to buy some groceries for the kids but him and i well ah...we will eat their leftovers....or something in the cupboards that is not our favorite....so my first shopping trip will be the 12th....and still trying to decide whether to go weekly bi weekly or monthly...any ideas....

Do you have a deep freeze? Do you have a pantry or area to create a pantry? I personally shop once a month for all major items and then only sneak into the grocery store for fresh fruit when we run out. Lately I've been buying frozen fruit to avoid even this. As the food starts to run out at the end of the month it forces me to be more creative with what I have on hand.

I also dislike the grocery shopping experience. I think this is something everyone has to figure out for themselves.

[tnthriftylady]

I've come to these forums today with a purpose; I am looking for support and accountability. My husband and I have agreed on a plan that would allow me the luxury of having the option to quit my "punch the clock" job as of July of 2012 if we can meet some financial goals by that time. In order to have a chance a doing so, not only must I stay within in the budget (which I normally do), but I must reduce discretionary spending so that it is at least 10% below budget. I'm going to every challenge I think can help us meet this goal, and I would love some .

This being said, I am in on this one. Our food budget(groceries/eating out) was right at $550/month last year, and in our budget we have it set for $500/month. In order to meet my 10% reduction, I need the food budget to be at $450/month or less, so my goal for January 2011 is $450 for food.

[mango]

Count me in. Will budget $600 for January which includes 2 adults, 1 teenager, 1 near teenager and two dogs. We live in a small town with only one supermarket that almost never has any specials and has never heard of coupons! So I will start with $600 for the month which is actually way down from what I usually spend and hope to reduce as we go.

[peanut]

momof2boys2005: I shop at Real Canadian Superstore for the most part. It's the cheapest place in town. Unfortunately selection is not the greatest.

alotofgooddeals: Have you thought about approaching a church/minister for a short term cover for groceries? I know our minister has cash designated by the church board for such short term emergencies. Maybe a trip to the food bank, just this once, would help you out right now? You and DH need to eat too.

[momof2boys2005]

alotofgooddeals: Have you thought about approaching a church/minister for a short term cover for groceries? I know our minister has cash designated by the church board for such short term emergencies. Maybe a trip to the food bank, just this once, would help you out right now? You and DH need to eat too.

ITA there's no shame in using these services when going through tough times! When things are better you can give back in whatever way you can. Keeping yourselves healthy (fed) will only benefit the whole family...almost 2 weeks is a long enough time. HUGS.

[madhen]

Okay, the accountability starts today!! As of right now, I have $400 for the month to spend for groceries and non-pet-store pet food!! I did get groceries last week, so I'm hoping they will act as a buffer for my first week of budgeted shopping.

As I did last year, I'll keep a running track of what I buy throughout the month (and the cost and purpose of each item) in my blog.

[wjcalderon]

OK, I'm in, too.
Last year I spent about $200 a month for groceries and cat food/litter.
I know I can bring that down to $175, maybe a little lower.
I spent around $20 a month on HBA - I should be able to cut that in half.

[alotofgooddeals]

Its just a game of really being creative....Last night...we took a box of pasta added a jar of cheese and put roughly a half of pound of burger into the mix... and voila....opened a can of spinach and string beans. Enough so we ate to our hearts content with a little bowl left over....So really its not as bad as maybe it sounded i just have to be a little more creative and well this frugalness is what it is all about....

momof2boys2005: I shop at Real Canadian Superstore for the most part. It's the cheapest place in town. Unfortunately selection is not the greatest.

alotofgooddeals: Have you thought about approaching a church/minister for a short term cover for groceries? I know our minister has cash designated by the church board for such short term emergencies. Maybe a trip to the food bank, just this once, would help you out right now? You and DH need to eat too.