£800 pm on groceries for a family

We spend £500pm on the big shop (2 adults, 1 teen, 1 child) plus the top up shops which are maybe another £100pm, but we don't drink alcohol and don't buy a lot of meat. We try and keep it as cheap as possible. So what you're spending isn't unreasonable IMO

That wasn’t my suggestion. Read properly.

Just tried the google of M&S food prices - issue is that the food catalogue on the M&S site doesn't give you the offers - just the basic price. If you are buying 3 for £12 then that can bring the cost down significantly. Also if you don't mind some UPFs the dine in deals at both Waitrose and M&S can stretch to more meals. I bought a whole chicken, a large pack of cauliflower cheese and 2 tartlets and I bottle of wine in a Waitrose offer recently - was a roast lunch for 4, a chicken curry for four, cauliflower cheese tuna and pasta bake for 3 and tartlets, salad and new potato supper for 2. And the chicken bones made stock for back of the fridge veg soup for lunch/ Ok so some extra ingredients there but mainly veg and pasta. And a bottle of wine!

No she didn’t but this was a thread about how much you have to spend on groceries and one way to reduce that is to cook one meal as much as possible. And you joined in by replying to my comment, so I’m allowed to reply to it and point out that your suggestion that cooking everyone the same meal is inflexible is not actually the case.

That's about what we spend too. We aren't drowning in extra food.

Sadly lamb is usually expensive now however you buy it, but if you buy it diced you don't have to buy a whole joint. Personally it is the meat that I miss most - and like many other people - there simply isn't a butcher anywhere near me other than Waitrose which certainly doesn't sell cheap lamp. I buy a lot from my freezer when it is on offer, it's our family treat.

I also used to feed my family of 6 pretty cheaply. As you say, if they don't like it they can have something boring instead. They're adults now and eat pretty much anything.

my dad was a bit “£60 a week?! I never spend that much! I go daily and rarely spend more than a tenner…oh”
yes dad
he shut up then. We just shop differently

So DM doesn’t really know how much it costs to feed 2 adults let alone 4? I think she should wind her neck personally.

Why care what she thinks? It’s irrelevant and uninformed.

Why would you buy pre-diced? It is usually the worst bits you can buy in terms of quality (in my experience). Buy whole and dice yourself. Or go to a butcher, you’ll get more lamb (or other meat) for your pound.

Are you always so combatitive? It's a discussion about the cost of feeding families, so it's natural that folk will discuss ways to cut those costs (which definitely includes not pandering to toddlers, SEN aside of course). As well as cutting costs, not pandering reduces waste too.

There a few budget recipe books on amazon. Buy a couple of them and see if you can reduce your spend, batch cooking etc. Good luck.

She didn’t ask for your advice and neither did I.

Um how exactly?

The UK exports a substantial portion of its goods and services to EU countries. This economic interdependence means that a strong trade relationship with the EU is vital for the UK's economy.The EU's economy is significantly larger than the UK's, and while the UK is a significant trade partner, it represents a smaller percentage of the EU's overall trade.

You really do have a completely false inflated view of the UK’s worth as regards the EU.

its not the 1980/1990s now when she did a family shop. Just asking what she used to spend next time she has a go and quietly put it into Google asking to convert to current cost in pounds. she gas found a needlevto irritate you and she's enjoying it. don't react. find something to itch her with. maybe don't use it. but have it in reserve but she'll go running to your husband saying she's being mean to me so be careful. x

Should have been month not week.

I didn’t do this to actually shop at M&S I’ve been a Aldi Lidl fan for nearly 30years

I did it because a pp said they did their 4 person shop at M&S for £125 a week inc louds of meat and fish

So
Im up late, can’t sleep and thought I’ll do a Google of M&S food prices for the hell of it.
It’s a bit sad I’m well aware

Id never spend that sort of M&S money. We spend £385 pcm on everything inc household and my lovely face creams and all toiletries. ( except magnesium bath soak 😁 from b & m )
but we are veggie so perhaps that’s why ours is cheap 😋

Nuts are insanely expensive at both M&S and Waitrose. I go through phases of shopping at Ocado but when I do this I also do a monthly shop at Lidl for mainly dry goods because the cost of those products at M&S is pretty eye watering. So I would go and buy nuts, tins, oils, coffee, jars of stuff like sun dried tomatoes or peppers, as well as household bits like bin bags and spend about £150-200. Then I’d do a weekly fresh shop from Ocado and get all the bread, veg, fruit and dairy.

I just did a online shop at M&S ( just to see how expensive it is not to buy anything )

and spent £130
not inc household stuff
no meat or fish as we’re veggie but a lot of nuts
only premade food was Lindas sausages 1 pk and one pack of bourbons

I can do our shop for a lot less at Lidl and Aldi

Also there’s a difference between making them something different from the adults from the outset (which we also sometimes do, my kids won’t eat a super spicy curry for example) and making a dinner for everyone and then when they refuse to eat it, making them something else instead.

Yes but the poster doesn’t say that’s the case here - she said she has toddlers so occasionally rejecting meals is par for the course. All toddlers can be pretty fussy. You can be neutral about it and still offer them plain stuff that you know they will eat, just don’t start cooking another meal. Offering them something else like toast IS being flexible and it’s not forcing them to eat something. It’s making sure they’re full up and fed. But it encourages them to eat more of the main dinner because otherwise if you know your favourites will get made for you instead then of course you’ll reject anything new. Toddlers ain’t stupid!

Yes, Mumsnet is a bit bonkers sometimes! 😀

Agree. I don’t understand this either. And I never manage to avoid top ups. I’m not criticising you, HansHolbein, I’m genuinely curious how you do it.