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.

@Pauuuuuuline join the 'make £10 a day thread'

I think it's doable if you are careful and seek out bargains. Meals like big pots of veggie chillie with lots of pulses. First night with rice, another night as enchiladas in the oven in wraps. Big veggie lasagne, sausage casserole, some delicious veggie curries and dahls. It doesn't need to be boring. Can be really healthy and tasty but will take more prep time. Time your shopping to pick up bargain 'yellow label' stuff to put in the freezer. I often pick up packs of reduced sandwiches for less than 50p if I time it right at Morris ons, Coop or Waitrose, I freeze them for packed lunches when I'm in a rush. Good luck.

Lots of meal planning, legumes instead of meat, frozen veg and yellow striping. Think it's okay, but the teenagers WOW and cats may push you over. However if you have a lot of staples in your cupboard right now (pasta, rice, tins etc) that will help a lot

OK - until January. Cleaning products whatever you can get from poundland/savers etc. Boxes of bicarb for grease,soap scum and tannin (wilko best) and white vinegar for limescale (supermarket). Washing up liquid as a general round the house cleaner. Wash yourselves with basics bar soap. Do laundry with powder (biggest box you can muster), rather then gel or anything gimmicky. Shampoo and conditioner supermarket own or alberto balsam. Occasional rinse with diluted vinegar if you have horrible hard water.

If you have freezer space find out when the last ditch yellow stickers are and clean up. Got a pack of 10 really nice sausages from our local coop for £1.30, the other night, for example. Those, plus tomato sauce and pasta, plus maybe some mushrooms or frozen spinach or sweetcorn, make a nice pasta and meatball dish for you and the extra teens. Could do the same with some cheap bacon bits. Make sure there's flavour and lots of bulk, for teens.

Does your "food" budget include none food purchases from supermarkets? Ie bin bags, washing powder etc? I'd start a gofundme. I'll chuck in some cash. Won't take many of us to make it more achievable! (only half joking)

4 teens eow. If you are careful it's definitely doable. Lots and lots of pasta!!!!! I really mean it. Tesco's brand hearty food and co is 29p you can make different pasta meals when they visit. Add veg etc. Buy bulk frozen veg?

Can you /Dp not look into extra work? Even if it is taking in ironing or babysitting or similar? That sounds horribly tight.

I agree with pickachew too. Stock your freezer now from the yellow stickers

I dont think its doable.

I could do this, but we don't eat meat. I don't really see how you can fit meat into this budget.
How about working out some sample menus to give you some ideas.

Find an evening job. Even if it is just babysitting. Do a car boot sale. Sell on Facebook. Even an extra 25 a week will make a difference.

What about doing Avon or similar?
I started a few months ago and make just under £200 a month as a bit of pocket money
That would really boost you're monthly shop!
And you can do it in you're own time with toddler in tow

i think things like rice pudding / swiss roll and custard (cans) are likely to be your friends to fill up and feel treaty.
Buy some canned fruit, instant whip, dream topping- that way if you are churning out a(nother) meal of beans and rice there's something to give a nice mouth feel.
Buy kilos of chicken thighs (they are miles cheaper than breasts) and make massive pots of things like chicken curry, casserole and cacciatore, padded out with chick peas. Go the supermarket and buy whatever veg is in the discount section add them to your pot, then freeze the whole thing. If you 'do' say 2 or 3 big 2 or 3 portion meals with reduced mince/ chicken / sausages/ veg and freeze them all you need to do is make the rice / mash / get a load of bread to go with.
Do the same with reduced fruit, a bit of stewed fruit with a crumble top is a treat.
If this were me I'd stop tea and coffee, move onto spread if you eat butter and make sure sandwiches were cheese spread / square ham on a square loaf. With a banana and a drink you're halfway to packed lunches.
Eggs for breakfast is always a winner.
Make sure you have herbs and spices and passata, stock etc.
buy dried beans (they are miles cheaper)
use bar soap rather than shower gel etc.
Adding things like pancetta and chorizo to meals make them taste more than they are.
I am sorry you are dealing with this- Heron (if you live near one) might be a good place to stock up too.
good luck

Needs must and all that...people make do with what they have.

A few years ago we needed to do the same. We had £45 to spend a week on family of 4 (smallest in nappies), cat and dog.
Lots of rice, pasta and potatoes. A chicken would do 3 meals. (Roast one day...bulk most with mash, a curry day after and then pasta and chicken in tomato sauce), frozen mince is cheaper than fresh, as are sausages and veg. We even bought frozen chicken legs and thighs and would use for a roast dinner.

Own brand value was our friend.
Washing powder we aim for under 10p per wash and actually measured it rather than just sticking a scoop full in.

Good luck.

Not sure this will work with meat included, tbh.

Not rtft but I'd say if this is your reality from September I'd be buying in lots of store cupboard staples now - lots of pasta, rice, tinned Tomatoes, beans, sauces, maybe some frozen fish/chips/pizzas, some pasta in sauce packets for lunches. I'd buy all of these as aldi or lidl own brand and stock up while you can. Same with washing detergent, washing up liquid etc.

You could even do some cooking and freeze it now if you can and if you have the space x

I also think it will be pretty joyless and you’d be best to consider scaling back elsewhere if you possibly an to give you a bit more leeway. Haven’t RTFT sorry but just chipping in!

It can be done though it will be challenging. So many great ideas from previous posters on this thread. When I have to cut back I go down the route of a little bit of meat going a long way (ie chicken and vegetable curry with rice using lots of veg to pad it out). Soup and yellow sticker fresh bread. Pancakes are a nice weekend treat and don’t cost much to make. Jacket potatoes. Pasta. All the carbs!
Meat and fish are much cheaper from the freezer section.
Meal planning and shopping from a list.
I don’t envy you the pets and teenagers on this budget but you can do it!

Sausage, mash, frozen veg, gravy.
Spaghetti bolognaise,
Chilli and rice
Egg, chips/wedges and beans.
Roast chicken, potatoes, stuffing, cheap veg
Chicken pie and mash. (Make your own pastry with lard and flour), use leftovers from chicken
Jacket potatoes with beans and grated cheese

Breakfasts - cereal/ porridge/toast and marmalade or jam

Lunch - beans on toast, cheese on toast, omelette sandwiches, sandwiches made with meat paste, ham or cheese. Homemade carrot and lentil soup

Snacks - bananas, yoghurt, fruit on special offer or yellow stickers

These are some of the cheapest meals I can think of, it's a bit light on things like fruit though.

That's how much we have. DH works away and I keep telling him it's not enough. When he's home he adds more 😢

I wouldn't be able to do this, not even close. I'd have to find something to sell to make up the shortfall. Actually I would just live out of my freezer, I cook a lot and always freeze leftover meals so I'd be good for a few months. But I don't see how this is possible if you are including meat, cleaning products, and four teenagers. Can you get to a food bank?

I think you can provide meals for this, but not meet nutritional requirements. It would also be very dull and demoralising. Why are you resigning yourself to it? There must be something you can do to make money in the meantime: childcare/babysitting, cleaning, Avon? People on here rave about matched betting. I'd make the best plan you can to fill bellies just in case, but also make a good, confident effort to earn extra to top it up.

Do you have a branch of The Junk Food Project or similar locally? Definitely worth checking out. They take donations of food that supermarkets can't sell due to sell by dates and pass it on for donations.

£200 amonth for 2 adults and a child could have been doable. With 4 teens I don’t think I could do it.

You will have to have a very plan diet to make it work.

Do you have local food banks? They could be great to give you that little extra you may need.

Also I’d save your last pay check rather than stocking cupboards to put towards what you will need rather than what you anticipate you may need. Or even saving it and being able to have an extra £10 a week could make a massive difference in a weekly food shop.

Meant the Real Junk Food Project.