What's the least you've spent on food shopping for the week?

[DramasticChanges]

I've managed to get ours down to £80 for two adults two kids. I need more inspiration! Help me get it lower.
We already yellow sticker but there always seem to be the same things reduced (Richmond sausages, carrot batons, doughnuts.) It's not always terribly healthy.
I get the £1.50 veg box from Lidl.
We eat meat free most nights.
Kids get free meals, I eat toast which is free at work and bring fruit, dp doesn't eat ( I think he does but doesn't tell me as I'll nag him to make sandwiches.)
Feeding others is pricey. Fed friend on Friday and in laws came over for dinner today so four extra adults.

Do you work Op? You might have already said and I missed it, but there's no way we'd have the time to be so frugal miserly with the shopping.

And I agree with Former, why do you prioritise holidays over food? I'm assuming your DC are little. What will you do when they go to school and ask to have friends round for tea?

That's exactly what I do OP, 30 hours as a nurse. And I'd be fucked if I was going to traipse around buying yellow stickers after a shift.
What are you saving for exactly? You're in danger of your life being small and miserable for some big savings goal and dropping dead before it happens. There has to be a balance between being sensible and enjoying life day to day.

I will prioritise saving to visit my dad over any premium brand pork chops. He currently lives in Europe but is retiring back to his home country next year. After that I will likely never see him again unless NHS workers get an almighty pay rise to allow us to fly to South America.
So yes, I will keep scrimping and saving and telling my kids all the time why we do this, and about abuelo and in time I'll sure they'll understand. You won't meet happier kids.

You could have said your reasons for scrimping in the first place changes rather than string this out as you have done 🙄

I feel no child needs crisps, chocolate, fruit juice, exotic fruits, junk food on a daily basis. We have these things as a treat

I am kind of with OP there. I never had crisps as a snack. It was a party food😁 I also agree we do buy more than necessary in general.
But that said, I do agree with some other pp that it does sound like there are some issues underneath.

@Villanomme but I never asked for judgement on my lifestyle. I asked for tips on saving money. I got some good tips but most of the comments were just awful scathing judgements on my children's health, happiness, my mental health, my priorities.
I started the thread as I have enjoyed budgeting and I wanted to speak with likeminded frugaleers instead I got told I should get a job and spend more money which I honestly don't have. I work really hard on a rehab ward on my feet all day for £9 an hour and I don't need any additional negativity after I finish my shift.

I asked for tips on saving money

But you have already cut your budget to the bare minimum. Look, i'm a massive fan of reduced to clear too but it's a bonus, not something you can create a whole menu around. I get you want to have cash sloshing around for holidays and stuff but come on.

it's about balance and at the moment that's sorely lacking.

But surely you realised before you started the thread that you really can't economise any further?

What tips could anyone possibly give you to bring your weekly food budget under the £20 a week you already spend? You'd have to just eat dust surely?

You do you but you need to mentally prepare for the teenage years, most dc suddenly acquire hollow legs when puberty hits.

I've got some great tips, haven't thought about growing my own before so that's great, especially as it's nearly spring.
The rest I'll just try to ignore. I wish people would think before they type though, there is a real person on the other end. You don't know if your comment could be the final push for them to do something.

I think though there is some genuine concern about your attitude to the shopping though. As I said, I think you’re doing amazingly on the amount you’re spending to prioritise nutritious meals but you’ve reached a point where most people that are earning just wouldn’t be in terms of budget and you’re still wanting to reduce more. That probably isn’t realistic. You might enjoy the Money saving expert old style money saving board but there might also be other places you can economise rather than the food budget.

I think the point is OP if you think you can compromise further on £20 a wk food shop for a family of 4 then you have some skewed idea of reality.

@Cremebrule thanks, that's very helpful. In following Dave Ramsey at the moment. Not 'gazelle intense' yet though as life's too short.

Forget it, unless you have an allotment bursting with fresh fruit and veg op (unlikely in January) and a herd of cows to provide dairy/ meat.

i buy 24 pints of milk per day(i have severe GERD and milk is the only thing that helps,i drink around 20 pints,more on a bad day)

There are 68 cals per 100mls of whole milk. 20 pints is 11litres, are you really telling me you take in that much fluid or close to 7000 calories a day?

Try joining scrimping on a budget Facebook group for some more money saving suggestions.

Thing is you started a thread claiming to feed 2 adults, 2 dc for just £20 a week. People were of course going to question the portion sizes of food the dc get, NO BODY on here has said stuff them with coco pops and crisp. All people have done is question how they get good portions for the mere amount you spend. Nobody likes to think of a child with restricted food.

Yes when available you could go berry picking with the dc but other than that unless you eat dust you can’t really cut your bill any lower as you are spending the bare minimum and you obviously wouldn’t want you or the dc health to suffer due to less food.

Food is important for health and you can’t keep cutting away at the budget, you’ve gone as low as you can. Surely you can see that??

Food is a great pleasure in my life, and I don't think it is all overpriced at all.

I couldn't keep to that budget.

ie you mention porridge and toast with homemade peanut butter for breakfast. My shop is in Euros but still, I bought all of these last week.

peanuts - €3.50
bread - €2
1kg oats - €2
Milk €1.50 per 1litre.

To make enough breakfast for a week for 4 I would need all the peanuts (3.50), 2 loafs of bread (4), half the oats(1), and at least 4 litres of milk (6). approx €14.50 = £12.20. Thats £12.20 from the £20 budget, feeding exactly the same thing, not coco pops.
Yellow sticker items don't really exist here and those items are regular prices not fancy all organic.

We live a semi-self sufficient lifestyle, with lots of fruit and veg crops, chickens etc. stuff gets preserved and frozen for winter, and used fresh in summer. I really couldn't get our bills anywhere near that low.

I'm loving all the defensive disbelieving posts

There is a book out titled how to feed your family for 20 quid a week. I'm tempted to take up the challenge myself.

@gamerchick you could do it easily! If we went vegan I could get my bill lower but dp won't let us (he's a butcher.)

As for the lady whose working in euros, if you don't have yellow stickers then obviously my budget won't work. It only works with yellow stickers and Asian supermarkets that sell in bulk. Peanuts from Chinese supermarkets are £1.56 for 250g. Bread is under 30p at the end of the day. Porridge oats are supermarkets own and very cheap. Milk is about 30p at the end of the day. You can freeze it too.

If we went vegan I could get my bill lower

Could you? Normal milk is cheaper than vegan alternatives isn't it?

I'd negate any savings driving around looking for yellow stickers. Your budget works for you because of your time availability and location. It isn't superior in any way, just not desirable or possible for many.

Ok I think we are missing the point here.

We really should be focusing on the pp who drinks 20 pints of milk a day! Wtf!

Your DH is a butcher? Does he bring home any leftovers that they don't sell by any chance?

If we went vegan I could get my bill lower but dp won't let us (he's a butcher.)

Do you get any meat at cost or free from your husband's job?