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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

The great british menu - food poverty... AIBU?

993 replies

Bogeyface · 11/07/2013 20:25

I hate myself for thinking this but, AIBU to think that Lady Whatsername who said in the 90's that the reason poor people couldnt manage on benefits was because they lacked the ability to cook good simple nutritious meals, may have had a point? The way she said it was totally U and she was very sneery, but I cant help thinking that there might be a grain of truth in it.

Of the three families I have just seen in this program I saw what 2 of them ate in a day. one was a mother and daughter who's only meal of the day was a microwave burger each costing £1 each, and the other was a family where the children had fish fingers or nuggets and oven chips, while the parents had tinned veg.

£14 per week that the first family spent is enough for a bag of baking potatoes, some basics pasta, baked beans, passatta, a pack of frozen sausages, a bag of porridge oats, some cheese, some sandwich meat such as Haslet from the deli counter (35p per 100g in my tesco) and milk. The DD would be getting free school meals if I heard correctly about her age and their income. Far healthier, more filling and more than one meal a day!

The second family, again, for the price of nuggets, fish fingers and oven chips they could make a spag bol using basics ingredients that would feed them all well.

RAther than focussing on the cost of food, which is only going to rise, surely it would be better to focus on educating people who eat badly because the food they choose is more expensive than cheaper, healthier alternatives that require a bit of cooking knowledge?

OP posts:
expatinscotland · 12/07/2013 11:42

And the ubiquitous chicken that feeds a family of 5 three times over. Have you seen the size of those 3 for a tenner chickens? Is you family made of mice? DH and I are skinny people with small appetites, Dd2 is the same. That chicken does ONE meal and perhaps a couple of sandwiches and that's it.

encyclogirl · 12/07/2013 11:42

Kevin I dont our local church is like that. We are in a rural area and the local church is our community hub.

AudrinaAdare · 12/07/2013 11:42

That is mad about the strawberries. Strange man. Wish I worked with you. We're going picking at the weekend if the latest crop haven't all gone by then.

encyclogirl · 12/07/2013 11:42

Italics fail.

encyclogirl · 12/07/2013 11:43

The only chicken I ever got 3 meals out of cost me 12 euro.

burberryqueen · 12/07/2013 11:45

it is true encyclogirl - u can only do the three meals to a chicken thing with a quality bird - and that does cost. Worth it tho'.

Alwayscheerful · 12/07/2013 11:53

Chicken thighs are the more expensive meat in India, breast is considered to be the cheaper meat because it has less taste.

It is far cheaper to buy meat from the butcher rather than pre packed from a supermarket.

I agree about the 3 for £10 chickens they are tiny but good for one proper meal plus another risotto type meal.

GoshAnneGorilla · 12/07/2013 11:55

Thank you to the patient people on this thread and OhMyGerd in particular.

I'm now having a lie down at car boot sales being suggested as a solution, as they are so very accessible to someone relying on public transport in the middle of a council estate.

TeWiSavesTheDay · 12/07/2013 11:56

Depends what your butcher is like - ours charges £25 for a chicken!

I'm sure it's delicious, but funnily enough most people can't afford that.

expatinscotland · 12/07/2013 12:00

A butcher. LOL. Is that next to the cornerstop Aldi?

Alwayscheerful · 12/07/2013 12:03

I can't believe I have offended someone suggesting a car boot sale, I have seen pots and pans and pressure cookers at tabletop sales, school Fetes, bric a brac stalls, church and community centre sales and car boots and charity shops. Do I live in a parallel universe? Are there really estates with No jumble sales or fund raising activities?

No one should have to live on £14 a week but I try to share some of my frugal ways.

tabulahrasa · 12/07/2013 12:05

The only chicken that's cheaper than supermarket chicken at my butchers are the chicken carcasses I buy for the dog...they're £1 a kilo, but that's after the meat has been taken off!

Mumsyblouse · 12/07/2013 12:08

Sadly, where I live, there's more charity shops than anything else and we do use them as a way of picking up cheap kitchen items (including one shop which does electricals). But you can't rely on that as a source of items, it depends what they have in! No-one has yet (I don't think) has mentioned rural poverty, I think it's much worse living in the small towns and villages in places like Cornwall and parts of Devon, you are very heavily reliant on cars/petrol and there's fewer great cheaper shops such as the 99p store I use for my toiletries. There really are food deserts in some of the outlying council estates too, they'll be a pub, expensive corner shop and perhaps a fast food place and not much else.

TeWiSavesTheDay · 12/07/2013 12:10

We're not offended. Just a bit weary and fed up of explaining why certain things aren't an option for everyone.

There's nothing wrong with a car boot, they're great. They're just very difficult to access without a car, same as big supermarkets (and aldi!)

I read an interesting analysis a while ago of how much easier it is to budget and live cheaply if you are wealthy than if you are poor. An updated version would be very helpful right now I think (if depressing)

TheSmallPrint · 12/07/2013 12:11

Our local butcher is probably the most expensive place in the western world quite frankly. They are 'award winning' therefore they have puyt their prices up accordingly.

I think if your £1 a day per person budget was put into a months bulk buying it may be possible (with a lot of planning) for a family? But living on it day to day is impossible, particularly if you are on your own. The costs of buying for one are so much more expensive. Also you need to have a decent freezer so you could cook large meals and freeze in portions.

It was a hard programme to watch.

expatinscotland · 12/07/2013 12:12

We live rurally, and yes, poverty is a big problem. 'Just move'. With what, brass buttons?

Car boots. LOL. Yep, 20p pressure cookers every week. More like mismatched and chipped tea cups and saucers.

mam29 · 12/07/2013 12:20

Has anyone requented the mse forums board particuarly the old styele one.

This thread has been running or ages

forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=4084527&page=1
its feed one person for £7 a week.

Theres also feed family for £25 or £40.

every so often the person who started the thread tots up up to date prices and pretty much ever supermarket basic range as had huge hikes.

For me my nearest is sainsburys and they by far worst talking about sudden 10-20p increases.

The girl called jack blog is very good as she says she shops saisnbursy as nearest so cheapest for her to get to and feeds herself and small boy for £10 a week so £40 a month including household!

Some of her recipes are good shes very creative and a good cook.
shes missed meals.

shes always commenting about rise in basics.

Over the last few years ood budget has got tighter as liteally its our only variable.

If car goes wrong its the food budget that suffers,

I used to be really good with food budget im a good cook but last year or so struggling to keep costs down only reason we dod so well is

i shop 4-5 different supermarkets per month which takes time.

Hubby drives I dont the retail park near me is 30min walk has lidls and large saisburys tend to go weekends as thats when lids deals are if hubbys of we take car and stock up.

saisburys drives me mad but we shop the deals only, stuff we cant get in lidls like value hersbs 17p value pepper 17p value stuffing.

we done morrisiosn in past thats hour walk, expensive bus ride.
tesco metro 45mins walk pricey
iceland 45min walk as opposte tesco metro up nearby high street.
my local high street 20min walmk just has large co-op pricey and saisnburys local also pricey.

nearest 4 corner shops all 15min walk are mace, booker premier, spar and shell garage.

most expensive booker has some cheap deals and value washing powder for a quid.

The spar every evening has best reductions get loads of bread there and other random not as much as used to but still odd bits.

but by best and far is co-op at tea time 6sih where theres s scrum for reduced and proper amounts off.
of course when kids are tired last thik they want to do is walk 30mins to supermarket ande then 30mins home as cant afford the bus or the bus drivers seem to hate kids and only let2 bugies on at a time or they make you fold buggies after you have several bags tied to handles even in rain , snow we go 3-4times aweek but its luck of draw sometimes theres loads sometimes theres nothing and feels fultile.

1st 2weeks arond payday we fine its week before pay day that things get very boring.

in past got good at every 2-3months doing decent storecupboard shop for essentials but noticed last 6montsh cupboards havent been as well stocked neither has freezer:(

we only go lidls/aldis for nappies, saisburys basic ones are ok.
do use the value wipes.

we eat less meat
fruit bowl frequently empty as my kids never stop eating.

we take adavantage of free fruits cherries at moment then it be plums and blackberries.
we have small veg patch.

we dont very often go aldis although ones opened much nearer than us but hours walk and dont find it overly cheap but best for booze, fruit and veg.

out problem is with 3 kids 2 under 4 milk even buying £1 for 4pints some days we get through 6-8pints a day so thats £14 a week on milk alone.

we get value toiliet roll.

i do what jack does and get spray bottle diluted with bleach.

I try hard to keep it £50 a week but family of 5 its hard. that includes 2packed lunches as hubby takes lunch as does eldest as school diners are £40 a month.

we do have large chest freezer but its not been full in a while mostly bread and frozen veg in there sometimes I batch cook and reeze little homemade ready meals in tubs.

i stretch a chicken to 2-3,meals as boil the carcass loads meat come off.

im whizz at soups and realised how easy they are to make.
can make my own bread and homemade pizza but its the bread flour thats pricey as is cheese we only buy on offer cheese, butter, crips or biscuits if not on offer we opt for value.

every 2-3months we drive farmfoods which is cheaper and better than iceland.

least twice a week my kids have something with chips.

for some reason they gone off pasta eldest likes lasagne but works out pricey.

eggs are amazig things.

we only buy non value meat and free range eggs/poultry so not comprimised on that.

we add red lentils to mince make it stretch further.

have had super noodles or packet pasta before.
made cauli cheese with frozen cauli. cook mostly frozen veg in micro.,

we try keep oil, garlic and onions always in stock.

if im in a £1 shop or cheapy shop i buy odd things there.

I love carboots and charity shop finds got some free saucepans last week, infact lots free stuff on local group also given lots away myself.

oddest meal red lentil and paxo burgers.

jacks carrot, bean and cumin burgers are lush red value beans 26p, value carrots its the cumin that costs.

i do try bake more its just even to make 12 cupcakes its 4oz butter and 4oz sugar.

I think the worst days have been when hubbys working weekends and its nice and we can smell bbqs but cat afford to do one.

on rainy days i do shop and get reduced burgers and rolls and keep in freezer for when it is sunny but at moment hubby needs clean bbq and needs charcoal.

our old oven landlords was rubbish grill dident work, door wouldent shut , collapsed hob we ended up replacing ourselves 2nd hand one of mate for 30 quid having double over, grill a door with window and ceramic hob.

we not an unemplyed family on benefits we only get child benefits.

hubby works fulltime
we run 1 car
i have 3kids 2not in school
no amily nearby
chilcares expensive
private rent.

we be better off when hubbys loan ends in couple years and hope move somewhere bigger and better and less than 1.2mile walk to school. Everything comes down to money at end of day.

mam29 · 12/07/2013 12:21

apologies for typo errors heres link

forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=4084527&page=1

£7 a week

KevinFoley · 12/07/2013 12:24

I think the people on this thread who are so kind and determined to share their 'tips' on how to eat well on £14 a week would be better off moving to the Credit Crunch topic. I seriously doubt if many people similar to the programme last night will be on this thread listening and learning. The solutions to me are as follows:

  1. no one should be living on £14 a week, this needs upping significantly.
  2. people need access to support through budgeting and cooking classes and paid staff who are allocated to vulnerable families.
  3. more pressure on supermarkets to price basic and nutritious items lower.
  4. better access to varieties of food shops and markets. In Barcelona there were fresh produce markets dotted all round the city. We need this model everywhere including rurally.
  5. free bus passes for people on benefits so they can get to the bloody shops.
darrenmillar73 · 12/07/2013 12:28

As a member of the family involved in the Great British Budget Menu I have to say that firstly we are not stupid, we know how to cook basics like spag bol from scratch, secondly we were told not to do anything like that by the program makers and thirdly it was around 7pm in the evening, all the housework needed doing so I'm sorry if it upsets certain people but i had to throw something in the oven to feed the kids while i went off and got stuff done. It is not a regular part of their diet it's a 'make do' meal in times when time is in short supply. Oh and by the way, they were on offer at the time of buying so they were actually very cheap.

Badvoc · 12/07/2013 12:30

You don't have to explain yourself to us Darren.
How did you find the experience?

TeWiSavesTheDay · 12/07/2013 12:31

You did really well Darren - I hope you'll read the rest of the thread, there are lots of people who understand how hard it is.

KevinFoley · 12/07/2013 12:32

Hi darren, did you fell you were set up by the program makers? If so I'm not surprised at all.

darrenmillar73 · 12/07/2013 12:35

Sorry the post from one called 'Bogeyface' annoyed me.
The experience was surreal! there was actually 3 days of filming in total believe it or not for actually very little airtime. Richard was (of camera) lovely and (on camera) quite blustery and loud at times but a very nice guy in actual fact. The banquet was really good, I have to say Angela is also really lovely and James well he's a big TV star so he was kind of quiet lol Not sure I would do it again lol, but a really good and positive experience. Not quite so sure having watched the final program if anything in the way of any solutions were actually offered though.

Badvoc · 12/07/2013 12:38

Glad it was a good experience.
I know what You mean though...and many of us watching on MN thought the same re: solutions and ways forward.