To think having £1 a day per person for mood is bloody misserable- it's purely survival

[Wineandcheases]

Anyone done it ? There are face book groups and challenges . I'm quite thrifty - but £1 a day per person is so miserable . Can hardly have any treats at all . On a fb they are saying how it's quite possible and how you can have lovely meals -I aren't convinced - easily £2 per person per day but £1 must be toast and rice

Umbongo - that's the point . Fb groups called living on £ day and feed family of 4 on £20 a week claim to do just this

That would be £28 pw though unless they have weekends off.

I don't understand why anyone would do it if they didn't have to. My MIL stinged on food in favour of the building society. Her dc remember hungry childhoods. Both SIL live abroad and last saw their mother in 2008. She's generous is other ways not many

Thats £35 a week for my family, about what I spend in Aldi weekly, so it is doable. We even have treats, lots of fruits to snack on and some biscuits too.
For some families that is daily life, not something to be endured.

Squink- you must be fab at budgeting if you can do it with treats as well - do you cook all from scratch to mange that ?

I'd never manage it - my DP would look at me as if I were crazy if we didn't have meat in our evening meal and I'm a bit funny about meat and will only buy free range / organic type meat so we'd get a chicken breast each every 3 days on that!

I've just been to Asda and got leeks, broccoli, carrots, parsnips and a Savoy cabbage for 29p each. I don't know how long they're going to do those prices for, though.

If I had to I am sure I could live on value noodles (about 20p a pack), afore-mentioned veg, frozen peas and tinned sardines for a week. Oats for breakfast for the DC. I don't eat breakfast or lunch, apart from an egg two or three times a week. Potatoes pretty cheap and nutritious.

And Smart Price passata is about 30p and makes a great pasta sauce, added to stock and onions and cooked for a long time (mince, garlic and carrots too, ideally).

I think cooking from scratch must be the key. We go through at least 18 eggs a week sometimes more, no prepared meat it's usually mince or chicken breasts or a cheap cut of pork (for pulled pork) All from Aldi is how we manage it, even the biscuits and occasional chocolate bars or crisps are their store brand. Tastes good to us.
The other good thing is frozen veg. No waste and usually £1 a bag in Iceland. So we have lots of variety, the freezer always has, broccoli cauliflower sprouts, carrots, peas, and whole green beans and peppers.

I had to for 2 1/2 years when I was on benefits: it's possible, but it's shit. It's easier if you're not single, because then you have a bigger "pot" to buy things like spices etc from, and it's probably easier now that there's Lidl/Aldi. We only had an Iceland, and my abiding memory was that all fruit/veg was £1 - so a cucumber was £1, as was an iceberg lettuce: anything approaching healthy eating was impossible, frankly.

In my last job, 5 years ago, I had £13/week to do the shopping with, and it felt like total luxury - now I am so, so grateful that most weeks, I don't have to tally up as I go round to make sure I don't run out of money to pay with. I am all for people realising that it's difficult (though the dollar a day thing isn't really a useful comparison across continents) but I dislike, as PP have mentioned, the aspects of poverty porn that often get woven into such challenges.

I couldn't do it in $ only here in UK in £
We lived in California and cooked the same, and spent $100 or more a week on the 5 of us. That was with shopping in very cheap discount stores.
Food is cheaper to buy in the shops here, but eating out is more expensive.