FOOD BILLS PER WEEK

[Diamondsareforever123]

We are two adults, middle aged, with 3 cats. Very low income. What's the cheapest food bill we could budget? We're not veggie/vegan, no food allergies or intolerances. I think we're spending too much.... and the fuel bill has knocked me for six!!

Well if you treat the cats like the mumsnet chicken, you could probably cover about 3 weeks worth of food there.

£25/30 should be perfectly doable at least for a short time.

I agree £25/£30 .

£30-£40

What the heck do people eat for £25-30 a week for two? Me and DP spend £40-£50 and I though we did quite well to be honest!

I also post over on the moneysavingexpert old style forum, they have a grocery challenge and plenty of people are doing it on less than the £25/30 I suggested. Lots of lentils and carrots, very little meat. But it is possible. Unfortunately, food is one of the few areas people can actually cut back spending. Everything else is often fixed.
We managed family of 5 (3 teens who do get FSM) for £400 last month and that's with eating meat nearly every day and I'm low carb and DH is gluten free. If I didn't mind eating carbs and didn't have to buy GF bread I could feed us all for £50 a week. I don't have to, yet, but it may happen.

What are your musts op? Start with those. I would struggle for me and DH on £25 because we don't eat processed meat and eat more fish. Few veggie meals a week helps though

£25/30 is completely unrealistic sorry. It’s me a 2 cats and I struggle to keep under £50/60

@MyDcAreMarvel

I agree £25/£30 .

What on earth would you buy in order to feed three cats and two adults on such a small amount of money?

We spend probably half that per week on three cats alone, and we definitely don't buy expensive, high-end food.

I say this regularly on here, but have a look at thrifty Lesley and similar sites. She has lots of weekly meal plans costed at about £1 per day per person. They're all nutritionally balanced and allow five a day of fruit and veg. Even if you only do that every second week it should help .

We are two adults....meat or fish daily....fruit, veg and salad...I spend between 65-70 pounds weekly....without dog food....

I think £50 would be as low as you could get it and still be eating healthy but you'd have to shop in Aldi/Lidl.

We have three cats, a dog and then two adults, and we probably average £100 week for everything, and that includes food for everyone, cat litter, toiletries and cleaning products.

We could do it for less, though, maybe around £70-80 would be realistic. You don't want to scrimp too much on cat food as it can cause health issues long-term.

Come on, there is no way £25 would cover a week's worth of meals, snacks etc and cat food, no way at all.

@IsDaveThere

What the heck do people eat for £25-30 a week for two? Me and DP spend £40-£50 and I though we did quite well to be honest!

Porridge, soups, lots of vegetable curries, lots of pasta, cheap white bread with cheap toppings/fillings, beans, eggs potatoes. I don't think it would be particularly fun, but it could be done and indeed certainly is by many thousands of people across the country.

Are people suggesting £25 per person or for the two of them?

I’m veggie and tee-total and I’d struggle to eat fresh, nutritious food for £25 a week. It’s different if you don’t mind / can only afford it all being canned or dried.

OP, what’s your current spend and by how much would you have to reduce it? That’s the main question.

Eliminate alcohol, buy less meat and more pulses to bulk out food. Oats / cheap muesli for breakfast. Apples and bananas instead of berries and mangos. Do a couple of very cheap meals a week such as jacket potatoes or pasta and tomato sauce.

I can’t help with the cat budget but like other PP have said, food costs can be brought down quite easily.

@LagunaBubbles

Come on, there is no way £25 would cover a week's worth of meals, snacks etc and cat food, no way at all.

I stand corrected, I hadn't allowed for the cats! I don't include cat stuff in my budget. £35-40 in that case.

No way could two adults and three cats live off £25/£30 per wk, totally unrealistic. Food and pet food has increased in cost so much. It’s not just food, but cleaning & laundry products too. We have a household of 4 adults,no pets sadly, we spent £120 today.

@nonevernotever

I say this regularly on here, but have a look at thrifty Lesley and similar sites. She has lots of weekly meal plans costed at about £1 per day per person. They're all nutritionally balanced and allow five a day of fruit and veg. Even if you only do that every second week it should help .

That's kind of what I was basing my guesstimates on, though I concede that prices have risen since and it would likely be higher now. OP asked what the cheapest they could budget was. Many PPs saying they spend double than that, fair enough but you could spend less, if you had to. You'd still get enough calories, just it would not be very pleasurable and you would not have such variety. 5 a day may go out the window and I doubt you could afford much fruit, but lentils and carrots are cheap and healthy and you'd probably be better nourished than people living on takeaways!

Surely a weeks worth of healthy meal or anything that's not just store brand beans and toast is going to cost more than £25 for two people? I'm ignoring the cats in this btw.

I really don't think this is realistic is it? I'm genuinely curious if this is even possible. Can someone give me an example of the types of food they would by to stretch over a week for 2 people with just £25?

OP if this is your genuine situation (as I'm sure sadly it is for many others too) can you not seek help from a local food bank? Or a local charity - even just for the cat food?

For one adult female with a good appetite and a teen boy with hollow legs, I spend about £45 in a normal week, plus DS has school dinners.

That bill includes basic toiletries and cleaning products.

We eat all food groups but I cook from scratch. No alcohol

*spelling - I meant buy (ugh)

OP asked what the cheapest they could budget was

That's true, but when it comes to pets (especially cats), going with the cheapest food possible is often a false economy long-term. A lot of very cheap cat biscuits cause health issues in (especially) male cats - if OP is on a budget, she won't want to deal with a urinary blockage and a trip to the emergency vet.

It's often worth paying a little extra (not much, £2-3 a week) extra for a better quality food that will ensure long-term health.

It's different if you have absolutely ZERO option but if there is a bit of leeway, I really wouldn't recommend going with really dirty cheap food for pets.

We're also 2 adults and 3 cats. Cat food and litter alone is over £20/week. At the moment we spend too much on food per week - approx £80 or so. Doesn't help that my DP is a fussy eater so we often cook 2 meals.
However we're going to take a financial dip soon so will need to cut back. I'd like to get it to £50 a week. Slow cooker dinners and pasta salads taken to work for lunch will help, as will cutting back on alcohol. A weeknight cheapie meal such as pasta and tomato sauce with grated cheese and garlic bread is also quite nice.

Check out Jack Monroe she’s done some great meals on a budget