food prices :-(

[cat 1]

Hello...I just wanted to have a small rant at the cost of food.I'm not 'strugglimg' exactly but certainly finding things alittle more difficult with the rising Tesco bill and the cost of petrol.We're allowed £125 weekly for food this inclused packing up lunches, toiletries, cleaning products, pet food.I seem to be over budget each week.Getting away with it right now as the childcare budget is slightly less than our proposed amount right now.We're only 4 payments into the iva and I'm really beginning to worry about the 5.5 years ahead.Cat

[gavin]

and ther is worsce to come

[MelanieGiles]

My top tip for cutting down on food etc expenditure is to shop fortnightly rather than weekly. We found in my family we cut our spending by more than one-third, as you tend to be a little more disciplined about what you buy, and put more effort into planning menus etc. Give it a try, you might be pleasantly suprised, and you can put the saved money into a fund for treats or a small holiday.

[carlmcmullen]

I would also suggest doing it online, might cost you £5 delivery but you are not tempted to pick up those little extras that you would normally pick up.... packet of chewing gum at the till, buy one get one free when you dont need the extra one you are only buying it cus it is BOGOF etc etc

Also if you google supermarket discount vouchers you may even find a promotional code to get the delivery free.

Also never take children with you as they have a habit of putting things in the trolley [:D]

[chris.g]

haha, the amount of times I've been caught with that one, Carl.... Lethal combination, kids and shopping....the shops always put the sweets at the tills knowing you'll be stressed and pressed for time, not wanting to create a scene by having a screaming child cos you said 'no'.....

[emma_t]

It seems to cost more every time I go.
Since I have been going to this dietician to sort out my diet due to a medicl problem, she suggests all these things and I go to buy and they are a ridiculous price.
Nuts and all these seeds, pine nuts are £3.49 a small pack!!
Ifeel like a bid munching on all these seeds - I might have a look whats in birdseed it might be a cheaper way.......LOL!
Having said that they have built an Aldi quite near me and I brought a pack of Gillian McKeith nuts and seeds which was £1.99 - next day spotted the same item in Waitrose for £2.69. I will look there for other bits and bobs

[chris.g]

Aldi is great for things like nuts and seeds and fresh fruit and veg. I go around 3 times a week to get my supplies of these as we are on a health kick at the moment, the big stores charge a fortune for things like this, you pay for the convenience of the 'one shop for everything'
xx

[carlmcmullen]

got to admit, we get alot of our fruit and veg from aldi as they are the cheapest, and i have never noticed a differnce in the shape, colour or tast of bannanas.

[emma_t]

First time I had been in an Aldi but I was impressed and will check in future.

Chris you on a health kick also, if I eat anymore seeds I will start to grow feathers...LOL

[Shining]

You say lethal combination children and shopping.......in my family it's husband and shopping, I hate him coming, you are guaranteed to spend more, his sweet tooth is not good for the bill!

[goulda]

The town I live in has a Tesco Express, Spar Foodmarket and Co-op. We find if we shop around the three you can get a lot of bargains and save money. Some people say "I haven't got time to do this" I think if in an IVA you have to find the time if you want to save some money.
As I am on a permanent low salt diet I need to try and save money on packed or foods in jars as I have to buy fresh fish and meat. Nearly always one out of the three supermarkets have toilet rool, kitchen roll, shower jel etc. on offer thus saving us money.

Of course I do appreciate not everybody has this facility.

[Soulgrowth]

Talking of shopping ... I have just started to go green and purchased myself a 99p cotton bag from my local Co-op store. I've grown really attached to my shopping bag ... I fill it up with my shopping, unpack the shopping and put it straight back in my handbag for next time ... now me and my Co-op shopping back go everywhere together, I even think I might take it with me when I go away for my cheapie trip to Holland next weekend. I had forgotten how nice it is to have a shopping bag.

Am I really sad or what? [:D]

Debbie

[buttercup]

I have noticed a huge increase in different items in the supermarket. One product has gone from 1.29 to 1.69 and 1 from 87p to 96p that is just what I noticed. Normal bread is increasing weekly.
Worse still I am a coeliac so I have to have gluten & wheat free. e.g 4 crumpets £1.90 (which I did not buy) but everything in the Free From section is very expensive. Bread can be up to £3.50 per loaf and a slice it only 2.5" square. The equivalent of kit kats 4 for £2.99.Special breakfast cereals etc. It is such a pain.
I hope the more suppliers that bring out gluten free products the more competition and maybe lower the prices but I do not hold out much hope.
Lunch times are worst as it is very hard to grab a quick snack as I cannot have normal flour, breadcrumbs, pasta, 99% processed food, soy sauce,burgers, sausages, ribs, batter, mustard (in most coleslaw)biscuits,pastry, wraps, desserts, cakes. You can get most of this stuff GF now but it is very expensive & not very nice. I am able to get a few things on prescription but not much.
What I can have is all the healthy expensive stuff meat, fish, fruit, veg, dairy & salads. All getting very pricey.

Most of what we eat is made from scratch & so does taste great.I make great shortbread biscuits, chicken kievs,meringues,fishcakes, burgers.Can not get a decent batter yet though.

Also being a coeliac you can not use the same breadboard,spread,toaster or anything else whaer you risk contamination.

What I have been craving for 4 years in a KFC & scampi.[:D]
Worst senario is a finger buffett at a special occassion as usually there is nothing i can have & just have to sit there watching & hungry.Eating out & take aways are a nightmare & very rarely ever do.

My son once did some research and Gluten is a man made product which our bodies were not designed to digest hence so many people with IBS ect that are probably finding gluten intolerable as well. I was fine until I was 40 then wham!. I do not know of anyone in my family who had it neither.
But overall I get on fine with a GF diet and feel healthier[:D]

[whichwaynow]

We buy all are food from sainsburys. We always buy fresh meat and fish and buy plenty of fresh fruit and veg They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day but cerial is so expensive even though we stick with the sainsbuys name. Aldis fruit and veg is it as fresh and does it keep as long.

[vickir]

The adverts they show on TV say that Asda have "2564" cheaper products than the others - Tesco being the next cheapest, but Asda dont give you any incentives, I've got 2059 clubcard points at the moment, i get all my petrol there as well, thats a £20 voucher off my next lot of shopping, i also bought in Wilkinsons - a fold up canvas shopping bag for 45p and they were BOGOF - so got 2 for 45p, tesco give you another 2 points if you use your own bag.
Also Morrisons, i tend to buy the BOGOF there as well they have so many each week and put the extra stuff away - hence i always have emergency rations in the freezer, at Pets at Home are always doing special offers on dog food - admittedly, my job involves me driving a lot of the time and i cover the whole of the Kent county - but i save a fortune by only getting certain things in certain stores. always check supermarkets websites to see what offers they have - then plan on picking up whatever at each one over the following week