To be struggling to budget my food shopping

[Toomuchtooyoung01]

We are spending a crazy amount on food shopping each week and its not sustainable. We don't eat anything extravagant, are both teetotal at home so not spending anything on alcohol, toiletries wise we only buy the absolute necessary basics (shampoo/conditioner, shower gel, handwash etc) so its not like I'm filling the trolley with a £10 pot of this or a £10 tube of that, its really frustrating as we easily spend £150-£170 a week and I feel for that money we should either have alot more than we do or we should be spending alot less for the very normal, non flashy food/products etc we are buying.
The only brands we buy are Pampers nappies (large pack a week) and every few weeks I'll stock up on Childs Farm bubble bath etc when its on special offer! All food is own brand.
Breakfast is cereal or toast with fruit sometimes pancakes or brioche for DD or sometimes mini bacon sandwich. Usual meals are a roast, sausages with veg and mash, fishcakes with veg, one or 2 nights might have oven food (9 months with baby 2 so not doing as much cooking as would usually). Lunches are usually sandwich/tin of soup/DD has things like chicken gougons if not eating the same as me.
Typical food shop - fresh fruit (apples/bananas/strawberries/raspberries/ oranges) fresh veg (brocolli/carrots/potatoes), miscellaneous staples like houmous, yoghurts etc as well as meat mentioned when listing typical meals. I do often make a chilli/a large tuna pasta bake etc which theoretically should see us through for a few days but never quite does, as OH often comes home for lunch so will heat up a portion of this etc
Please can anyone offer advice on where I'm going wrong & how to make some savings?! Thanks!

If I were you, I'd change my shopping habits first and foremost.

Do one 'big' shop that will last you 10 days-2 weeks or so of staples. Tins, dry goods, toilet paper, drinks, snacks e.g. biscuits etc, cheese, meat etc. Do this in Lidl. Expect to spend about £100.

Then do one - and one only! - top-up shop in Sainsburys for fresh veg & fruit (and make that primarily apples/oranges or things like melon you can cut up yourself), milk and any other essential items. Challenge yourself not to buy "snacks" e.g. biscuits. I would bet "snacks" is a biggish issue.

You'll need a proper meal plan and to stick to it.

Can you get to Costco? On top of our weekly shop, we do a bulk buy from there approx 6 weekly. We buy a big pack of mince, around 2kg and then portion into 200g packs, one does a bolognese or chilli for 4 packed out with other stuff. We also buy chicken breasts and thighs, big pack of toilet roll, washing tabs, dishwasher tabs as needed. Buying in bulk means things like dishwasher tabs we only end up buying once a year if that.

I've had to really pare back our grocery shopping. I find this easier to do online where I can really see easily where the money is going. It's also easier to see what's on offer.

I've managed to get it down to £60 but that's just for me and DD! DD is dairy free and her replacement milk/yogurts cost nearly £10 a week of that.

To get it down to £60 I've had to lose all snacks/treats for me, with the exception of making sure I have butter/sugar/flour/eggs so I can bake when the sugar craving hits! This is also an activity DD and I can do together.

Kids branded snacks are terribly expensive so I've stopped buying those and just ensure we've got bananas, oatcakes, crackers, apples plus whatever we've baked.

I'm shopping at Ocado which isn't the cheapest but isn't quite as expensive as Waitrose (which many people believe). I shop at Ocado because they are the only option that deliver to us that sell bread that both DD and I can eat between our various allergies and sugar free soya yogurt.

I like Ocado anyway because they stock a huge range and their own brand veg and free range meat are really good and cheaper than Waitrose.

I could save more by buying non free range meat and eggs but I’d rather eat these things slightly less often than buy battery farm etc.

Cleaning products, I’m gradually realising you don’t need a different product for each room. I now just buy washing up liquid, white vinegar and a bleach product (in case a sickness bug strikes).

I need to save more but have reached the level where I don’t want to compromise much more. I’m cooking everything from scratch and do find veg costs really add up. I was delighted last week to make a roast chicken last 5 days but when I totted up the costs of just those 5 meals, I’d spent more on veg than on the chicken.

I spend about £110 a week in Sainsburies On a family of 4 , everything own brand unless on a cheaper special offer . Family of fussy eaters so there are normally 2/3 variations per meal ( only 2 of us eat meat) .That includes Kids and husbands packed Lunches and all household stuff and toiletries . I meal plan and keep a close eye on what’s in the freezer / cupboard. I throw hardly any food away . I might go and do one top up of milk / fruit / salad between £10-15 .

We spend 75 or so a week for 3 adults and I do all my own cooking so it's mainly fresh stuff. That's in Aldi. I plan around whats on offer or is good in store. Eg the butternut squash are huge at the mo so I've bought a few in, they've been blitzed into soups, roasted and stewed so far.

Sainsburys is expensive. If Aldi is hard to get to I'd sit down with a meal plan and use asda online.

It is fine for your DH to take leftovers for lunch. It’s cheaper than him buying something else. I can’t believe someone said if he has it for lunch then he has to have soup or a sandwich at home for an evening meal. I take leftovers to work for lunch and always have a meal later on. We spend half of what you do and there are four of us.
Lidl. Cut out / down meat. No raspberries / strawberries in winter. What snacks are you buying? Never buy shower gel etc. Use soap.

It seems from what you've listed that your family eats a lot of meat and fish, cutting back on that would probably help lower your weekly costs as meat is some of the most expensive food you can buy.

You also say 'fresh' fruit and veg, again this is unfortunately very expensive, do you have a veg market near you? I wouldn't be able to afford all the veg I eat if I bought it from the supermarket, fresh produce is expensive.

Thats quite a lot of money, we budget £430 for shopping every month and although we always spend it the shopping will include beer wine the odd toy and kids clothes ive picked up in a supermarket and we have 2 freezers full of food and a cupboard full of basics. We do main monthly shop at aldi (£110) a monthly b&m shop branded tin stuff mainly (£50) monthly savers shop for toiletries (£50) then top up fresh stuff as we need it. 2adults 3yr and 8mth old so includes nappies and baby milk powder.

Fresh fruit is expensive ,and you are also having pots of Hummus .yoghurts ,and so on all rather yummy but not too cheap! Roasts ,chicken goujons and so on are also expensive .We used to buy an extra large chicken and have a roast Sunday,mini roast Monday and a risotto on Tuesday! Does hubby eat large portions too ? What about buying large yoghurt pots and using frozen raspberries .Also lentils are an excellent source of protein, and about half the price of mince ,I tend to use less meat and put the remainder of beans or lentils healthier too ! I also shop in Sainsburys and find their large 800g frozen beef mince good value you can use as much as you need and leave the rest frozen for next time.What about a jacket potato for supper beans/cheese/tuna and mayo .Also buy loose fruit and veg if you can cheaper usually ,

4 toilet rolls a week for 6 people

Perfectly reasonable...

The average person uses 57 sheets per day. There are around 250 sheets per roll, though this does vary.

One roll should last one person 5 days. On average.at That means that over a week, 6 people could expect to use 8-9 rolls.

£170 a fortnight is typical

My advice is

• eat seasonal fruit. This time of year go for frozen raspberries/strawberries
• buy bigger packs of loo roll. I usually buy the bigger packs as it's cheaper. Do you have a Farm Foods, Poundstretcher type discount stores? They do great deals in bulk amounts of loo roll. You use loads of loo roll, cleaning products etc if you need it weekly. I have 3 teens and I don't need to buy shower gel etc weekly.
• how much waste do you have? Consider frozen veggies so you're able to eat it all
• have you tried other nappies? Most people swear by supermarket own brand over pampers which is very expensive

On MN you just use one individual square each time

The average person uses 56 sheets of loo roll a day?! Wow!

57 sheets of loo roll? Wow. I am pretty sure I don't use that much but will check

We’re a family of 5 (but one in nappies) and easily use 8 toilet rolls a week

We use about 3 or 4 loo rolls a week, four of us. But we aren't at home much during the day tbf.

I don't know when u last shopped in Aldi but their range has really expanded the last few years. When we first started there 2/3 years ago we were always having to top up elsewhere for certain things (like whitening powder detergent) and now I don't think there is anything we use regularly they don't sell!

We used to spend £60/70 a week in Sainsbury's/Ocado also mainly buying unbranded. We halved it shopping in Aldi. (And we buy stuff from the middle aisle we prob wouldn't have done in Sainsbury's! 😂)

stop going to the shops - shop online for starters - far less likely to throw in odd bits and bobs that way

I agree with buy 9 rolls rather than 4 etc - also get frozen fruit and veg then it lasts!

I spend a lot less with 1 adult, 2 teens (who also play sport at a high level) and one fuss 11 year old

even then we don't get through so much bog roll

Trewser DH works from home so that’s probably where it’s all going

Unless you give us a proper breakdown of what you're buying, or post a pic of your last week's receipts, the only advice people can offer you is what has already been suggested repeatedly.

Meal plan.
Go through your receipts to see what you're buying.
Only buy what is on your list after you've made your meal plan.
Buy things like loo rolls and nappies in bulk.
Use my supermarket.com.
Eat fruit and veg in season, or buy frozen.
Check your food waste.
When you do the meal plan, check cupboards, fridge and freezer, so you don't buy what you already have in stock.
Shop for most of the stuff at Aldi or Lidl, then get the other bits in Sainsbury.
Stop doing top up shops. Make sure you have enough to last the week.

If you want anymore nuanced advice, you need to engage in the thread more.

56 sheets of loo roll a day! I can't believe that's right. I am sure some people use that much but don't believe most people do

Even buying packs of 9 loo rolls seems silly. It's something we all buy so why not buy bigger packs which work out cheaper?

I would never buy smaller than packs of 18 and often buy them 2 at a time

I don't think OP meant she shops once a fortnight. It looks like she missed out a comma, and meant she shops twice a week, plus top up shops.

I like to swap at least one meat based dinner with Quorn or a veggie alternative per week and find it can make a big difference. My husband was not initially a fan but overtime he has started to enjoy it and there is definitely a cost saving.

Aldi all the way - cheaper than Costco in my experience! Food is good, often better than the other supermarkets, and cheaper. And they rarely move stuff round so you can be in and out quickly.

as others mention, eat seasonal - Aldi will encourage this with their pricing. Also a kick in the teeth to your kids to be eating fresh berries in January. Frozen are just as good, or give them apples.