Spending way too much $$ on groceries!

[ShannonM816]

I have spent $300 this week alone on groceries and I'm out of avocados, mushrooms, peppers, and onions. I am going CRAZY I cannot afford to spend this much money on groceries. I live in rural Nome, Alaska where everything has to be shipped or flown here. Fresh produce is outrageously expensive, as is everything else. Its winter and no one here grows their own food as far as I know, because the ground is frozen most months out of the year. I don't know what to do! I really want to continue my whole30 and maybe even turn it into a whole60 but I'm a single woman with a less than fantastic salary and a dog; oh and the cost of housing here is out of control also. $1500 for a two bedroom apartment that includes heat; not water, electricity, cable, internet. I need help! I don't know what to do!

 

I can't really help with the food thing, other than as MrsStick suggested, look for frozen/canned veggies, but I would suggest maybe making a post in the Sourcing Good Food section, with a title that mentions being in Alaska -- you might get more responses from people that live/have lived in AK that way, rather than on this thread. Not that there's anything wrong with adding on to another thread, that's okay, I just think a separate thread where you're specifically asking for tips for your very particular situation might get you more relevant responses. I'm pretty sure I've seen another person or two on here from AK, they'll be more likely to notice a thread that mentions Alaska and maybe have some good suggestions.

[Sharon Simpson Thumann]

My husband and I talked about our spending and which meals we preferred over others. We narrowed it down to our 3-4 favorite meals. Chuck roast, meatloaf, pork chops and roast chicken.

 

Every week I make a meatloaf, chuck roast and roasted chicken. I make a "shepherds pie" from the left over chuck roast, lettuce wraps from left over meatloaf and chicken soup from the left over chicken. Six meals from three meats..seventh meal is pork chops.

 

Doing it this way I can afford the better quality meats from Whole Foods and stay within a reasonable budget.  Right now we are spending about $100 a week, which I think is pretty good considering what it used to be.. about $600 a month.

 

I no longer feel stressed about the budget and now that our garden is coming along pretty good, I hope that for the next 4-5 months I can save even more by not having to buy much if any produce from the grocer/farmers market.. except for sweet potatoes.

 

I know our meal choices sound boring but I just switch up the spices for a different taste weekly.

[Gabenick2]

Before my whole 30 I calculated that we were spending a little over 1,000.00/month eating out for family of 4. This also did not include starbucks nor groceries. We would order out from restaurants several times a week because we are so busy and are gone for the entire day. Since starting the whole 30 I have saved money while buying organic, at first I couldn't believe the amount I was spending on organic eggs but realized I would not hesitate to pull my wallet out for junk food. Mcdonalds meal would cost us around 28.00 for one meal, I can buy 4 lbs of meat for that price and eat for at least 3 days, this has been an eye opener for me.

I have completed my first whole 30 and my husband decided to do one as well, I am saving money and feeling healthier eating healthier and would never go back to the crappy processed foods. I have learned to cook using a crockpot and we make sure we have enough left overs for extra meals.

[AtlantaJJ]

I know this is an old thread, but I just looked at my grocery bill.  WOW  I need to read this thread because my grocery bill went through the roof during the month of April.  I did buy a lot of spices and and pantry items to get me set up for cooking. And granted I only ate out once this month, that includes my son, so some of the money that was going to restaurants is now shifted to grocery. But I need to get a handle on this!! 

[-Kara]

Try cooking fewer meals with fewer ingredients. And check in with your actual spending before you did whole 30. Chances are you spend $100 on food before probably more but it was in difference places, eating, out, vending machines, snacking....

[-Kara]

stop shopping at costco. 

 

You spend TONS more there and if you are single you would be better off going to the service meat counter of the your local grocery and buying ONLY what you need. 2 breakfast links, 2 sausage patties, 1 lb of beef stew etc etc. Just buy what you need. You don't save money buying in bulk really if you don't have it to spend...unless you are cooking and storing your food and not cooking as much the next week....

[____Emily____]

My grocery bill definitely has gone up significantly, and at first I was a little appalled, but then I realized that it's probably balancing out.  I'm no longer stopping daily at Starbucks for a latte or other drink (savings of approximately $5/day ) and before this, my grocery budget didn't include dinner because I ate out nearly every day. 

 

One thing I'm doing to try and abate the costs is looking for sales. I live in an area where I can easily access multiple different types of grocery stores, so I buy the foods I need at places where they're on sale. For instance, chicken breast packs were buy one get one free at Giant near me last Sunday, so I went and bought two packs (and picked up some BOGO blueberries too). I found a compliant sausage I liked a lot that was on sale so I stocked up on that and likely won't need to buy more for the remainder of my 30 days (although I'm thinking about making this a Whole60, so I'll need to get more for that). I'm also focusing on simple meals when I cook - Nothing with too many ingredients that I have to purchase, especially expensive ingredients. 

 

[Southerncinn]

I live in So Cal and understand. I am taking 1 -2 recipes to make a week and freezing or eating leftovers for lunch. Lots of seeking the sales and sticking to two fruits a week that are on sale. 

[Southerncinn]

I live in So Cal and understand. I am taking 1 -2 recipes to make a week and freezing or eating leftovers for lunch. Lots of seeking the sales and sticking to two fruits a week that are on sale.