AIBU to think £200 is enough?

[Pauuuuuuline]

AIBU to think that £200 a month on groceries is enough?

As of next month, as a family, we'll have £200 a month left over after essential outgoings to spend on our shop.

This £200 will need to accommodate two adults, a toddler, two cats. Will also include four teens EOW.

Can currently spend (and often do) roughly £400-500 a month, so for us, £200 seems quite small but it's doable right?

Any thoughts and tips on how to do it would be much appreciated.

“How do people living on a lot less manage?” What the hell?! Who are these people living on a lot less than ops situation? People living in 1800? Sympathy op this sounds awful I would look to increase income

If this is just for food only, then I think you could do it with extreme planning but it’ll be really tight and strict portions. I can do a weekly shop for 2 people for £20 if we don’t mind eating the same food repeatedly. For a quick money save ditch meat and cheese, bulk up with rice, oats, potato and beans, buy your fruit and veg frozen. If you are buying herbs, spices and tinned things like chickpeas and coconut milk, if you head to the international foods aisle you can usually get those things cheaper down there (sometimes half the price, and the spices come in big bags for the same price as those little glass jars!). If you need nuts and seeds, head to the baking aisle where you can buy big bags cheaper than you can in the dedicated nuts/snacking section. If you don’t want to ditch meat, you could try the meat substitutes from quorn down the freezer section, they’re half the price of actual meat and maybe your family won’t even notice the difference ☺️ How good the food tastes is totally dependable on how good you are at cooking and willing to use herbs and spices to get good flavours in there. You can always nab some discounted foods if you go into supermarkets at the right time - our local Sainsbury’s usually has a discount section in the fridge area and M&S starts reducing food after 6.30 (good way to pick up sandwiches and ready meals for lunches etc). Good luck!

Some people truly do have no idea how lucky they are. £200 and you think you will not be able to manage

It’s £46.15 per week to feed 2 adults, a toddler and 2 cats, as well as toiletries, cleaning supplies and other consumable household goods like batteries, toilet roll, etc.

Then every other week the £46.15 needs to do all of the above AND feed an extra 4 teenagers over 2-3 days of the week.

That’s not lucky. Not at all.

Make food from scratch everyday. Plan ahead what you will have and calculate your costs for shopping in advance. Like one of them hand held shopping devices you get in asda and coming in next week in Sainsbury’s. Shop in lidl and aldi also, basically shop around. Go for the shop brand or unbranded rather than the big names. See if there is a local market to buy from.
See if you can shop elsewhere for other things and make more allowance for food money. Also get the reward cards like nectar and Tesco etc. Use money saving expert website. Use top Cashback website.

Switch your current account to another bank if you get cash back for doing so.

Can't wait for fuckface to realise their error

www.google.com/amp/s/www.realitytitbit.com/whats-on/this-shop-well-for-less-home-made-cleaning-product-could-save-you-thousands/amp

Saw this on episode. About using borax as total cleaning product. I use norwex cloths to.wash and clean as you can wash them - ecloths are cheaper alternative

If toddler isn't potty trained then look at nappy bank - lets you try cloth nappies

Meal plan for a month - much easier esp if you have an big freezer. Get used to soup for lunches.

If you possibly can, it might be worth buying a huge bag of rice in your first month (most supermarkets do them, often reduced, in a sack), as while it's a lot to lay out initially, it's cheaper that way and will last in a cool, dry place. Jack Monroe has some great recipes to keep your diet varied on a tight budget.

If you have a local market, they often sell £1 bowls with veg in them which is way cheaper than supermarkets, especially if you go near the end of the day.

If things get very tight, you can ask to be referred to a food bank. It might just be enough to tide you over.

I'm so sorry. I know what it's like. It will be miserable, but you say that it's only for a limited time, and that will help so much. Just count down the days until the new year and know it will get better. Is it even possible to get a loan, or an extension of your overdraft?

All the very best.

As an aside has anyone ever bulk bought from Amazon Groceries? Wondering if it comes in any cheaper

OP with regards the Olio app ... if you're able to get to bakery type places which advertise on there it would be a great way to get baked "treats". Things like pastries would be lovely the following morning if you spray with a tiny bit of water then gently warm through. A great posh breakfast

Also look on Oh My Dosh for paid trials. I've just finished a 3 month Prime free trial and earned £4.50! Once you hit £10 you BACS it to your current account.

And if you do any trial/survey sites ask here if anyone has a referral code that way you could get a bit extra on top.

Similar to what @Blondeshavemorefun said but I'm in the Bromley area. Feel free to dm if it suits you.

@Dorsetcamping I have a friend who uses it for some things, she says prices are similar to Costco, so cheaper in bulk for things like DW tablets, kitchen/toilet roll etc.

Disclaimer: I've no idea if my tagging pp worked, apologies if not.

Check your local butchers for deals. Ours does 5kg of chicken breast for £21, that's £4.20 a kilo, in lidl a kilo pack is £5.99, maybe more now.
I split into packs of 2 or 3 and make things like curries and casseroles.
A slow cooker will come in handy as you can buy cheaper cuts of meat and make some nice meals (pulled pork is a good one, I can buy a joint for under £3 and make enough to feed us for days)!
Check for a local food waste project in your area, theres one near us that anyone can use, local bakery factory often donate stacks of pies that were rejected by m&s (for stupid reasons like the pastry not being in the right colour range )
It is doable but it's hard, when my kids were small I had a smaller budget for 2 adults, toddler, baby and 2 cats and we ate well. Admittedly some foods were cheaper then, fresh veg is a lot more expensive now but frozen can be picked up cheap.
Do you have a heron or b&m in your area? If you do they are worth checking out for deals

@Applesandrhurbarb perfect thanks!

Meal planning and some golden rules will be your friend:

Rules
No juice or fizzy drinks or booze,
Waste is your enemy.

Jacket spuds are great

Lots of different pasta things simples things like cheesy with peas

For the teens massive amounts of pasta.

Stews with lots of carrots and potatoes and a small amount of stewing lamb.

Make a ton of vegetable egg fried rice. It’s delicious and costs pennies.

Bake a cake every week.
A Simple sponge as a treat

Jack Monroe - a total hero, check them out and their recipes. They know how to do it and they have don’t it.

Don’t be disheartened, it’s achievable and its’s for a few months.

You might pick up some life long tips and skills and become a household budget hero!

Come on OP you can do it!
Xx

The other thing to look out for is if anyone keeps chickens near you. Obviously depends on where you live but there are often signs and honesty boxes for cheap eggs from homes near me. I’d be more wary about the toddler as the chickens might not have been vaccinated but you’d probably get some really nice eggs far cheaper than the supermarket factory farm ones. In the next few months people will be trying to offload excess of home grown fruit and veg as well. People always seem to have more courgettes and apples than they know what to do with.

I’m quite rural though so all of the above might not work for you if you’re somewhere in a town.

Hi , locally we have a library that sells fresh food twice weekly and dry goods daily at massively reduced prices . Also local community hubs that do the same . No need to be on benefits , open to all . Check online or in your local area . Massive help when struggling . Good luck .

Everyone swears by lidl, aldi and asda But tbh I find own value or essential ranges cheaper in the big 4-....plus.... hear me out before you say I dont live in the real world-trust me as a low income, single mum i do! Waitrose can do super, value foods.Their essential baked beans are nicer than Heinz and 1.10 for a 4 pack and essentials ketchup 69p for a decent size bottle both have less rubbish and taste nicer than leading brands, they do three for £10 on meat like steak, mince, chicken breasts or pork like the other supermarkets and they are consistently cheaper than Sainsbury's ie hi juice squash with sugar not sweeteners is 1.50 v Sainsburys 2.70. Their essentials loo roll is better quality than supermarkets normal brands and beats andrex imo
This is the best part if you get a loyalty card they give you money off vouchers usually £8 off £40spend they do the 40 spend before offers and if you do a big shop
They let you split the shopping into multiples to make best use of vouchers...
Some things are a few pence more-we are gluten free, me medically and my son as I cannot be bothered to cook two pans of pasta so I find Tesco cheaper for GF foods. Or 5p more in the brand of bread my son uses, most things are the same, So I split the shopping and stock up on Waitrose loo rolls, ketchup, beans meat and frozen etc when they send vouchers and do other shops else where.
I find the budget supermarket veg goes off within hours never mind days so buy at supermarket or market for that. If you have time to do multiple shops then this can be brilliant.
I also make a cheap vat of vegi sauce blend it down and portion up for meals and use it as a base for so much and red lentils bulk up many mince meals and cost pennies... plus egg or beans on toast is a fab cheap meal 😁 and obviously poverty corner (yellow sticker section) we have spent many a month living in poverty corner....
Good luck

I like to make apple and blackberry crumble at thus time of year from foraged fruit. Also nice to put some in the freezer for the winter months.

I find some advice on here bizarre and completely out of touch - like to buy chicken breasts cheaper at a butchers.

On £46 a week, chicken breasts of any sort are a very expensive option...there are far, far cheaper meat options or healthy alternatives (such as lentils/eggs) than chicken breast!

CoolWivesClub2019 I’ve been wondering that. Even the cheapest chicken breasts will be too high a percentage of the budget.

Op the other thing I’ve been wondering is energy bills and heating over the winter. It’s a harder time to be trying to be frugal.

@Elle1234

tesco frozen 1kg of chicken boob is £3.50 so a LOT cheaper than a butchers. Still pricey considering you can get 2kg of frozen chicken thighs/ legs for £3.35.

OP dont forget your loyalty cards if you have them. You have gained some decent amounts on nectar, Tesco's, boots, superdrug etc. Worth using them too

Chicken thighs rather than breasts