I don’t know how they think we’re all going to survive with these prices.
Groceries will blame inflation and whatnot, yet they’re printing record profits.
That’s because the truth is the other way around. It’s the hoarding of record profits by the corporate class what drives the inflation
That’s their point.
Wife has been canning for a few years now and we have a pantry of fruits, veggies, and dehydrated food. She goes to the farmers markets during harvest time and goes to town on entire cases of tomatoes, corn, beans, etc. That will last all year for our family of 5. We also pay a friend to raise a pig on her ranch and butcher that once a year. Just got ours (over 400 lbs!). Pork is A LOT cheaper that way. Haven’t found anyone to go half or a quarter in on a cow. We also would need another deep freezer and don’t really have room for it.
We also meal plan weekly so we only buy groceries for what we need to make meals. That saves a ton of money as you aren’t wasteful as much. Oh and we either do pick up or delivery as you spend more when you’re in the store and see things you want but don’t need.
We make almost everything we can from scratch. Wife recently found a recipe for baked oyster crackers with butter and seasoning on them that make dirt cheap snacks and they’re fantastic. The store brand oyster crackers are $1 for 16oz. That’s almost cheap enough to not make those from scratch too. We haven’t bothered yet.
I’ve always been interested in the idea of canning, but it’s not really a thing in the UK. I know that veg is cheaper and gas is more expensive here than in America but still, surely it costs so much money to can things that you can’t be saving much? Is it only worth it if the produce was in season and therefore really cheap?
Definitely not about cost on the veggies. At best it’s break even compared to the store. It’s more about knowing it’s the veggie and water only. Or seasoning too if you like them a certain way. We’ve found corn to be higher quality too. Plus, where we live peaches are fabulous and better than anywhere else in the country so we get to can the best and control the amount of syrup used so they’re healthier. Sorry Georgia, you don’t actually have the best peaches.
Totally get that. Much nicer to know you’re not eating too much processed crap.
Jealous of the peaches!
I’ve always been interested in the idea of canning, but it’s not really a thing in the UK
I suspect it’s more common in the more rural areas.
Or with the city people who manage to have an allotment.
I’m in a rural area, it’s really not a thing! Especially not pressure canning with ball jars. People do make pickles and chutneys etc but those are preserved with vinegar and we use kilner jars with a rubber seal to store them. I’ve never once met anyone who has pressure canned vegetables.
When I was a kid (20 years ago) my parents would make pickles, and some assorted pickled veggies. Usually the veggies would come from a farm around us or an auction where you could buy trays of veggies about the size of a flat of canned drinks. They would also do some fruits in syrup, mainly ones that my uncle would bring us from another part of the country where him and his neighbours had fruit tree.
When I think of canning vegetables, cucumber pickles are the first thing that comes to mind.
Yeah and we obviously have those here although you could just make them in any old jar and keep them in the fridge. The thing that seems to be quite different in America to the UK is the whole pressure canning scene. We do have similar food but it’s all in tins, nobody really makes it themselves and I’m not even sure where you’d get hold of a pressure canner, you’d probably have to import it.
Yeah, I’m making a lot myself too, but I sadly don’t have the storage space for large amounts of food. And the homemade goods are often more expensive, unless you can get veggies on the cheap from a farmer
We probably aren’t saving much on the veggies overall for sure. Some are cheaper than canned but others aren’t. However, we know exactly what’s in it and we buy it once a year so we’ve budgeted for it.
That’s the way to do it. Raising pigs or cows, if you have the space or know someone who does, is way cheaper than store bought pork/beef.
Pork is the cheapest meat on the shelf right now
Depends on your location. Where I live, chicken is cheaper.
It is, and it’s even cheaper if you raise your own. Plus it’s better quality meat.
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Do not buy processed shit
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Do buy real food (legumes, vegetables)
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I mean it
- buy in season vegetables (cheaper)
- know the regular prizes, so you can detect real discounts from fake ones
- buy in bulk (cheaper)
- prepare several days food at once with that bulk and freeze it for later use.
- skip expensive food (usually meat) on a regular base when on a budget and bij it only as a treat/for weekends
When you buy in season, there is usually a lower prize as it’s in abundance as it’s grown in the fields instead of greenhouses. I’ve seen discounts that were the regular prize but the ‘original’ prize has been increases to make it seem a discount. When you buy in bulk (say in a 2 person household for 4-8 servings) and prepare in bulk you can freeze in 2 serving potions. (saves preparation time and it saves on groceries runs ;) ) Defrost food in the cooler, which takes about a day to defrost and save a tad on energy for the cooler, Also you save on the preparing side as preparing a 4 serving meal doesn’t requires a lot less energy then 2x a 2 serving meal. (including the re-heating of the 2nd meal) Save leftovers. Even half portions can be combined with others to make a fuul (and maybe even interesting) meal.
Also, when you eat meat less often you save a tad (when you eat meat, when you don’t the biggest saving is already achieved).
I don’t think it matters. An onion costs me $2. A McDouble costs me $2. I can get a whole processed burger for the price of a condiment on a sandwich I’d make at home.
You’re not using that onion correctly. Chop it up and stick it in something with other ingredients that you can eat for 8 meals, that costs $12 to make.
That’s a basic cooking and money-saving concept
I’m certainly not eating the onion like an apple lol. But, to your point, a sandwich is exactly what you just said. Pick up an onion, some bread, some lettuce, some tomato, some mayo, some mustard, salt and pepper, deli ham (or roast chicken), some cheese. Buying those ingredients would be… What $40? And you’d be able to make 8 sandwiches. Maybe have some leftover cheese and mayo. Perhaps a chicken carcass for stock.They’d be pretty good sandwiches too, but without bacon because we wanna keep it budget. Or you could get 20 McDoubles. By caloric value, 20 McDoubles will give you more food. You’ll die from malnutrition over a period of time, but not from lack of calories.
You can get waaaaaay more than 8 sandwiches worth of ingredients for 40$.
Sure, a lettuce sandwich costs $0.79.
I was curious and just priced everything out and you can get 20% more Mcdoubles/$ than sandwiches. 16 sandwiches with ham, lettuce, cheese, tomato, onion, mustard, mayo, salt, and pepper to 20 Mcdoubles. Calorie wise they are roughly even, I did not break it down by nutritional value but I would guess the sandwich would win on that. So you’re right that you can get more Mcdoubles for your money but I’m right that you can get almost 16 sandwiches out of 40$ (and you will have leftover mustard, lettuce, salt, and pepper). If you get your condiments from stolen packets or catch sales on meat you can probably even out the cost of the two.
I appreciate that you did some earnest calculations. Normalizing for McDouble calorie counts is a decent way to do lateral comparisons. I did think about it, rather than napkin math, but then the CRM exploded at work, so I got distracted.
For 2 USD you should get 500g of onions
If it helps your calculation, CAD is the appropriate currency, and food prices are not pulled from logical sources. Best of luck.
Your onions are as expensive as McDouble? That’s really hard to believe
This is what has been aggravating me lately. It USED to be very solid advice to try to cut out processed food and buy produce instead. Now, though, even produce has freaking skyrocketed in price. Shopping the same way that used to be very thrifty has become way less so, to the extent that I don’t know how people are surviving like this either. And we make decent money! But spending a guaranteed $200 every time I go to the store just for basic things we need for the week is killing me.
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i’m gonna assume this post refers to the US’ prices.
it’s definetely noticeable in germany, but i’ll manage. my worker’s union is currently negotiating prices with my employer, and so far it’s looking pretty good.
but i pray for you guys, they really don’t seem to make life worth living over there.
Could easily be Canada too
ETA: Here’s a good video on Canada’s and the states’ inflation problems from an outside perspective.
Yes, sorry. I’m in the US.
with a fair amount of help. food pantry, when i can get there–once or twice a month, for a bag of close or past-date produce and other perishables, and a few other things; and ‘leftovers’ brought to me by others a 2-3 times a week.
my ‘grocery bill’ hasn’t gone up–because it can’t. i spend the same, but get a lot less for it.
Left it all behind and moved to a cheaper country
Where did you move to?
South Korea. As long as you speak English you can become a teacher. Took me about 3 years to become comfortable with the language, at which point you can move on to other careers.
Salary is less but cost of living is way less. Also very fun. Other countries are good too, so take your pick. China is cheaper, Japan is a little more expensive. South Korea is a little grindy, so one of those two might be better. You can also go Europe or Africa if that’s your taste.
Meat = almost eliminated from my diet except for frozen ground chicken that’s 10 dollars.
Potato chips = replaced by crackers, much cheaper.
Vegetables = all frozen now
Have you looked into the one time expense of buying an air fryer? You can make your own chips/fries/etc which are both cheaper and healthier. Obviously you have to buy the appliance but it pays off in terms of health and groceries eventually. Like, crackers are usually loaded with crap ingredients. You could air fry some potatoes in a little spray of healthy oil for a dollar or two and do your wallet and your heart a solid AND you’re still getting your daily allotment of potatoes lol
You don’t need the gadget. You can make these things with a normal stove and oven. As someone who cooks a lot someone gave me one of these for xmas. It’s a damn convection oven. A tiny one worth way too much money. Learn to use the appliances you have and stop with the useless gadgets.
It is a convection oven but most people don’t have a fancy oven with a convection oven. Yeah you can make it in the oven but it comes out better in the air fryer and mine heats in literally one minute, I can use it in summer because it doesn’t add nearly as much heat to my house, etc. It’s way more convenient than using the massive oven for a plate of fries or something and I can even cook an entire pizza in the air fryer I got using the bake setting, which again is just much easier and more convenient for me.
Would love one but the place I live has a 1000 watt limit before I blow a fuse.
Aldi.
If you have one near you, get your staples from there. It’s so much cheaper than Kroger, Costco, Publix, and Target.
Shout out to WinCo also. As a heads up they only take cash/debit though, not credit.
Lidl is even better. Aldi is more for snack by me. I still goto Stop and Shop for niche things.
I’m lucky enough to live near both and they’re the only things keeping me eating relatively healthily while I lack access to a full kitchen…
No Aldi in WA State.
Aldi is a great option when you don’t need something specific, like a cut of meat. Or a single lemon instead of 50 of them. I do Aldi first then Wegmans or Price Rite for whatever is not there.
Super Hans is the man
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I’ve yet to go to a coop that wasn’t much more expensive for questionable quality food.
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Fortunately for us we make a lot of money so we don’t look at prices.
Same here as well. I’ll still try to find cheaper options but I won’t remove an ingredient from the cart because the total is too much.
I haven’t reached the point yet where I’m personally dumpster diving, but I have a friend who has an inside connection at a major grocery store. They call when it’s time to take out the garbage, set it outside the compactor, and my friend swings by to snag it. It’s incredible how much gets thrown out. He preserves what can’t be used immediately and gives it away to those who don’t have a problem with the source. I’ve benefited from a 5 lb bag of jerky and a box full of dried fruits, veggies, and other items.
Otherwise, I’m always on the lookout for sales and deals. When I find one I stock up, like the one going on now at Amazon for Sweet Sue canned chicken that worked out to 78 cents for a 5oz can.
I’m fortunate enough to have a few acres and access to water at agricultural rates, so I grow enough produce to supply myself and a few other families that subscribe to my farm-to-home service. It’s enough to pay the costs and buy the grandkids some nice presents, but I ain’t getting rich off it.
Stay away from prepared foods and buy more cheap staples like rice, beans, and potatoes. Shop the meats that are the best price per pound and know the highs and lows of fresh fruits and veggies to get better deals. Beef and fish have been basically unaffordable lately while pork and chicken have been more reasonable.
The prepared foods and snacks are getting ridiculous. A half gallon of cold brew coffee is up to $7. I can make it myself for a fraction of that, but it’s more labor for me. A bag of cool ranch doritos was going for $7 a bag… I chose some cheaper chips I don’t like as much, but got 2 bags for $4.50. A can of pad-Thai sauce is $12 at my grocery…
Yeah, chips are outrageous. I simply stopped buying them.
A half gallon of cold brew coffee is up to $7. I can make it myself for a fraction of that, but it’s more labor for me.
I mean, only a little bit of labor. Even with premium grounds, I can’t imagine it costing more than 50 cents to make a half gallon. As for labor, just throw it all in a pitcher, give it a quick shake or stir, then leave it in the fridge for a couple of days. Pour it through a standard filter. I use the basket from my regular coffee maker.
Making your own cold brew is one of the most cost-efficient DIY foods out there.
I’ve been making cold brew with an in-jar filter that is more complicated than it should be but still not hard except for the pre planning for a few days in advance when I’m traveling for work. I’m definitely going to try it the way you describe though.
Is it cheaper to make your own?
Much
Almost always cheaper to make your own anything.
I continue to be spoiled by Costco’s low prices. Seriously, check them out if you can.
I also imagine that similar wholesale clubs also have lower prices, but I cannot say from 1st hand experience.
It’s low per unit, but high up front. And you gotta hope you don’t get tired of whatever you bought
Aldi is also great if you’ve got one near you and are not able (or don’t need) to buy in bulk.
If you haven’t shopped there before, they’re a German based chain that’s spread across the rest of Europe and a lot of North America and almost-only sells their own store-brand products. Their prices are similar to Walmart and Kroger store brand but, IMO, they’re of much better quality. As a person with ADHD, I find shopping there to be much less anxiety inducing… it’s a grocery store the size of a Walgreens. If I need pickles, there’s one brand with five different cuts in three flavors; there’s only two kinds of ketchup, six kinds of fruit juice, four different laundry detergents… one kind of paper plates. Also, the cashiers are scary fast.
I can complete my weekly shop in like twenty minutes without a headache or back pain. It’s genuinely like someone designed a grocery store just for me and it’s cheap AF… just remember to bring your own reusable bags and a quarter. You’ll need a quarter to unlock the shopping cart from the rack. You get your coin back when you return your cart like a civilized human being. They have paper bags for sale at the register for like 28¢ if you forget to bring your own.
I agree, Aldi is great. Especially for 1-2 person households.
Aldi >>>> Costco
A lot of shit at Costco isn’t even a good deal these days. People just assume it must be because they are bad at basic arithmetic. Like, there are some good deals still, but not like how it was ten years ago. These days most stuff is legitimately cheaper at Aldi.
Costco is great, but I have to force myself to shop without a cart to prevent me from buying stuff I don’t need (so I only get the essentials that I can carry).
Getting 1.5kg of cereal lasts me way longer which is amazing, when the normal grocery stores have “family size” boxes that have just been shrinking and shrinking.
We are almost exclusively Costco and WinCo for groceries. They are consistently the best places to go, price-wise.
That said, I’m getting really fucking tired of corporate greed making hard to live.
I buy staples as cheaply as I can, and most other things I only buy on sale. Plan my cooking for the week around that.
