To ask how you've lowered your food shop?

[coffeecoffeecofffee]

Recently come under a crap time, can't work due to chronic health condition, lost our UC payment each month of £400 as my partner now earns above the threshold (but still doesn't take home much due to debt he has unfortunately) & had my PIP review recently (I used to get £430pm) and may have that reduced/taken away completely.

I'm trying to think of ways to reduce my outgoings and have decided to reduce my food budget to £25pw. (used to have £35pw)

My partner and I buy our things separately but share the cost of regular household bits, cleaning and usually salad! We both eat two completely different diets, me vegan & him a meat eater. So about £6 per week of each of our budgets goes towards cleaning & toiletries.

Left with £19 for food for the week.

I already buy a lot of frozen veg and the only fresh produce I buy are apples (whatever's cheapest), strawberries or blueberries, tomatoes, salad (spinach, kale & rocket), avocados& sweet potato.

I usually buy 1 dairy free milk (£1.40) which lasts me most of the week as I don't eat breakfast every day.

I eat a lot of wholewheat pasta w/ no added sugar pasta sauces (tomato based & pesto) as it goes a long way, no added sugar & is cheap and delicious as well as healthy as I don't eat a tonne!

I also buy a bag of plain frozen fish for the week at £3.30 for 5 fillets.

I tend to find the fresh stuff & toiletries like body wash take up most of my budget, I've tried shopping at my local Lidl and Aldi but the fresh produce is often going off when I'm in there! Let alone getting it home, hence I find Morrisons/Asda/Tesco better for that.

Anyone got any smart ways to reduce/meal plan for a vegan? I don't like beans, lentils etc so that's annoying as I know they're really cheap!

@00100001 I get my nuts from Lidl in quite good size resealable packs so not expensive at all.

An average week of food shopping for me (excluding toiletries & cleaning stuff) includes:

2-4 avocados
1-2 bags of salad
Bag of spinach
Bag of kale (I have previously frozen these in the past to use in sauces & smoothies but have been eating them fresh lately in salads)
Blueberries or strawberries 2 packs a week.
1 pack of apples (whatever is on offer)
1 big pack tomatoes
Bag of wholemeal spaghetti (usually get from Lidl as well so quite cheap)
1-2 pasta sauces (incl a vegan pesto)
1 dairy free milk
1 pack of frozen fish
1-2 bags of frozen veg
1 loaf of wholemeal bread (which I freeze for toast)
1 pack of wholemeal pitta bread
1 pack of Heinz baked beans on offer

That's usually my regular list I often have things in the cupboard that last ages or I've bought a lot of like canned tomatoes, chick peas, crackers, nuts & oats etc.

How are you going to afford to move?

How are you going to afford vet bills / injections for the puppy?

How in the name of under GOD are you using that much loo roll?

And other than that, you want to reduce your food bill but you won’t vut out the very expensive things you buy. 🙄

www.facebook.com/groups/651859231575794/
Feed yourself for £1 a day group on Facebook, has lots of advice and sample menus with costs

@00100001 I bought a few packs on offer recently in Tesco, 3 cans of the no added sugar ones for only £1! I brought 3 packs. (9 cans)

I don't like the cheaper versions unfortunately.

Op, try using a couple of squares of loo roll for an initial wipe then wash yourself with soap and water. You can use any kind of plastic container cut down to size and just fill of with water before using the loo.

@BadPennyNoBiscuit I don't eat eggs, never have. I don't like them.

Okay fish is meat. It's just 'fish' to me. Meat is stuff like mince, sausages etc. But I am aware a fish is a living creature.

Don’t use wipes. They are very bad for the environment and very expensive. What on Earth is wrong with a cloth and cleaning solution on it?

Meal planning is the biggest thing.

Before meal planning I would just dump a lot of 'options' into my trolley incase I fancied it. Now I just buy strictly what I need and if I'm under budget I will add some treats.

We buy frozen berries, 3 bags for a fiver from Tesco . I think the Aldi frozen ones are even cheaper.

Spray and kitchen roll instead of wipes, wipes are so expensive. I think you'd notice the difference pretty quickly if that's all you cut out.

@S1naidSucks I've explained so many times on this thread that was an accident? Wtf. 😂😂

This thread!

While I wouldn't buy avocado and strawberries on a very limited budget, I think if you can get all that for £35 between you then great. Leave the food as it is and really cut down on your cleaning spends. Personally we are happy with washing up liquid for most things (it's actually great at cleaning bathrooms, with a scrubby sponge thing) but if you want to "trade up" on hygiene, you can get antibacterial surface spray, Eg Dettol, that is about £1 a bottle and is suitable for cleaning high chairs etc. That would work out much cheaper than the wipes. Cut up an old t shirt or have a pack of cloths and wash them in with your normal laundry. Consider buying cleaning products at a pound shop or similar, and give up wipes or save them just for the loo.

Also consider that cheaper products can be very watered down. Eg we never buy value washing up liquid or bleach because it's so watery, it gets used up quickly. I actually buy fairy washing up liquid when it's on offer - honestly it lasts us months!

If you are choosing economically priced products and still spending lots, the next thing to question is whether you are using excessive quantities.

Also what laundry detergent do you use? That and dishwasher tabs can get expensive.

31575794/
Feed yourself for £1 a day group on Facebook, has lots of advice and sample menus with costs

My friend did the original version of this from the book published more than 2 decades ago and I still remember the lentil tart with happiness.

Ideas you could but passa I tubs male your own pasta sauce with garlic,onions peppers and frezze it. Go to the supermarket at hello stocker time this helps us. Use local greengrocer or usually do 4 avacado for 1 quid. If you have a herons, they sell all of alternative milks now for 1 quid but it's hit and miss. Use lentils to bulk out your meal maybe would oh bit companies and have one vegan meal a week. Or a veggie lasagna. You spend alot on toiletries I would spend that in 30 every 3 months. Bnm sell them xhepa also savers is amazing for cleaning products.

@PatchworkGirl Yes I buy the Lidl bags, such good value :)

Okay, I'll try some haricot beans, I like chickpeas too and eat those a few times a week (are they a bean or pulse?)🤔

I wouldn’t even use kitchen roll. I use cloths that are washable. I bought 2 kitchen roll at the end of August and I’m still in the first roll I use it so rarely.

It’s so wasteful to use wipes or kitchen roll when cloths are cheaply available.

Right, I’ve calmed down now, but stop calling yourself a vegan. People who do that make it difficult for those of us that are actual vegans.

Check out the Eastend range in Tesco. It’s quite often amongst the foreign food isle. Tinned chickpeas and tomatoes is four tins for £1 and really good quality.

@Witchend My partner bought the puppy for us and pays £30pm in insurance. He has enough savings for the pups vet bills :) The money is tight for me, my partner earns enough for himself & provide easily for the dog but is clearing a lot of debt so can't help me out. (Not that I expect him to anyway!)

As PP said, you want to cut down expenses but you don't want to change anything!! Makes it kind of difficult! A cloth and soapy water is probably better at cleaning than some stupid wet wipe. Will save lots in the long run too. It's only a tiny bit more effort. If you want to save money, you need to make some effort!

But soap bars for washing instead of shower gels. MUCH cheaper, last much longer, better for the environment, etc.

£30 per month puppy insurance is extortionate. Unless it’s a pedigree breed with known issues.

Can everyone stop having a go about the toilet roll? Op has already explained the reason why she might use more than others do. I use a lot myself. It's hardly the crime of the century.

@coffeecoffeecofffee I have found variety of tomato called Micro Tom, you can get them on eBay for £2. I usually buy a supermarket pot of basil, parsley and coriander and just pot them up. Though it is probably cheaper to buy seed.

@Skyecat Thank you. It's very embarrassing, people seem very insensitive on here regarding the toilet roll issues. I didn't want to go into that much detail!

@keepforgettingmyusername Thank you! I'll take a look :)

Stop shitting so much

OMG!!!!

That toilet roll use isn't excessive, theres 2 of us and we use 2 per day.
Do people who use 1 per week also sometimes not bother to use loo roll after the loo or use their hand or something instead?