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Original poster

To be appalled at the cost of food?

474 replies

pinotnow · 08/05/2023 20:55

I know this has been done to death and we are in a cost of living crisis, but listening to the news they are intimating that it is slowly levelling out and the worst is over. Yes as far as I can see it's spiralling out of control.

I did a Lidl shop this weekend and bought absolutely nothing for main meals as I have a Hello Fresh box for three days coming, boys are going to their dad's for the weekend on Thursday and I have store cupboard stuff in already.

Therefore all I bought was stuff for lunch boxes, snacks, fruit and breakfast cereal. No cleaning stuff, oil or pet food needed this week and one bottle of wine. I thought it would be a bit less than I usually pay (only the second time I've used Hello Fresh) and certainly the trolley wasn't as full.

It came to £78!! Maybe £5 or so less than I have usually paid lately. It's out of control. How on earth are people supposed to manage and when will it stop going up all the bloody time?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
15
CharlotteRumpling · 08/05/2023 22:35

Charlize43 · 08/05/2023 22:32

Eating more and more pasta with basic mince and canned plum tomatoes.

I started crying in the supermarket the other day because I really wanted to buy a mango (which I used to buy before but just couldn't afford it). A kind man offered to buy me one, but I told him that I couldn't accept it. I think he thought I was some kind of loon, standing there, staring at it with tears streaming down my face... He told me to come back at 9pm on off chance that they might be reduced at the end of the day.

Several days later I overheard two young women with small children talking about food banks at the bus stop and I started crying again.

How has it come to this?

I really hope you get your mango soon.

EmpressSoleil · 08/05/2023 22:36

People are happy to spend hundreds of pounds a month on the latest mobile phones, beauty treatments, cups of coffee, nights out, deliveroo, Sky, Netflix etc etc but they resent spending a fiver on a chicken

Literally the only thing I have on that list is Netflix. I can’t afford any of the other things. So no it’s not an “excellent post” @PlanningQuestions
Its a sweeping generalisation and very ill informed.

Southeastdweller · 08/05/2023 22:37

BarelyLiterate · 08/05/2023 21:20

Food in U.K. supermarkets had become ridiculously cheap, eg £2.49 for a whole chicken, so an adjustment to more realistic pricing was long overdue. Much of this was driven by poverty wages for workers in food supply chains which was itself driven by a limitless supply of cheap migrant labour while we were in the EU.
Supermarkets & their suppliers now have to compete for workers, so wages have risen sharply across the sector which is inevitably reflected in prices. Is that really such a bad thing?
The era of cheap food also allowed questionable spending priorities to become normalised in the U.K. People are happy to spend hundreds of pounds a month on the latest mobile phones, beauty treatments, cups of coffee, nights out, deliveroo, Sky, Netflix etc etc but they resent spending a fiver on a chicken. 🤷🏻‍♀️

No-one's complaining about paying £5 for a large fresh chicken (when was it £2.50 - a decade ago?).

AzureBlue99 · 08/05/2023 22:37

My OH and I have no kids, paid off the mortgage, good wages. I can afford the higher prices but every week I note that things have gone up ridiculously to the point I have stopped buying allot of unnecessary pies. So what you might say. This isn't a boast post it's a recognition that things are going up unnaturally fast even for a recession. I do not know how people on tighter budgets are managing. Supermarkets did very well out of covid - on food and other goods. There is an element of profiteering going on, and I can't see any price reductions any time soon. You can bet your life some of the Tory's have shared in supermarkets so it's not as if they are going to step in.

Cracklecrack · 08/05/2023 22:38

No it’s horrendous.

Comedycook · 08/05/2023 22:38

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AzureBlue99 · 08/05/2023 22:38

Not just pies. Not sure how that came about - should have been things.

ArmWrestlingWithChasNDave · 08/05/2023 22:41

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No, posting on a forum that buying cheap animal products is wrong isn't even in the same ball park of awfulness as somebody who buys cheap battery eggs.

Your hurt feelings are nothing compared to what those chickens and dairy cows suffer.

lavenderlou · 08/05/2023 22:45

The era of cheap food also allowed questionable spending priorities to become normalised in the U.K. People are happy to spend hundreds of pounds a month on the latest mobile phones, beauty treatments, cups of coffee, nights out, deliveroo, Sky, Netflix etc etc but they resent spending a fiver on a chicken. 🤷🏻‍♀️

There are plenty of people who don't spend money on any of those things and are struggling to eat. Bit sanctimonious to pretend everyone would have more than enough if they stopped having pizzas delivered.

I have an above average wage and don't spend on any of those things except Netflix. I'm having to cut back on food shopping because of the cost. It must be incredibly difficult for those on low incomes.

throwaway2023 · 08/05/2023 22:45

ThereIbledit · 08/05/2023 22:18

Poor OP's point has been thoroughly lost, which is that the price of food is still rising at a scary rate.

She wasn't asking how to cut her budget, complaining that she couldn't afford it , or claiming that she had purchased the cheapest things.

Anyway, my top find has been those big packets of ham, chicken or turkey offcuts that you can buy in iceland, and either Aldi or Lidl, I can't remember which. £2.99 and many times more meat in them than a packet of fake fridge raiders 😉 - knowing teenage boys, it would be wise to pre-portion it up though.

Aldi Grin I buy them a lot

Comedycook · 08/05/2023 22:46

ArmWrestlingWithChasNDave · 08/05/2023 22:41

No, posting on a forum that buying cheap animal products is wrong isn't even in the same ball park of awfulness as somebody who buys cheap battery eggs.

Your hurt feelings are nothing compared to what those chickens and dairy cows suffer.

Show quote history

Vast, vast majority of the population buy non organic, factory farmed meat and bog standard dairy and eggs.

Take your sanctimonious drivel elsewhere...I'm sure there's some wealthy, lentil weaving middle class types who are able to afford organic produce who will be happy to slag off the plebs with you.

Florenz · 08/05/2023 22:48

People got used to cheap food as it was produced by people working for slave wages. If you think it's too expensive, just grow your own food, raise your own animals for slaughter etc.

Hopefully the increased prices will lead to people eating more sensibly and not throwing so much food away.

Okunevo · 08/05/2023 22:48

ArseInTheCoOpWindow · 08/05/2023 22:30

We don’t value home produced food. We want seasonal
foid all year round. We need to change and cook seasonally

Hey, here’s an idea. Why don’t we all eat turnips?

l hate turnips, swedes and sprouts. I don’t want to eat crap English veg all winter.

Parsnips, leeks, kale, cauliflower, carrots, cabbage? Beetroot and winter squash also store well through winter. Sure there are lots more I can't think of this minute.

katepilar · 08/05/2023 22:49

What you bought looks like a fancy shop to me. Your fruit stack isnt basic fruit, basic would be apples only, not a whole lot of exotic fruit. Lots of fancy snacks full of sugar and processed food.

throwaway2023 · 08/05/2023 22:50

Charlize43 · 08/05/2023 22:32

Eating more and more pasta with basic mince and canned plum tomatoes.

I started crying in the supermarket the other day because I really wanted to buy a mango (which I used to buy before but just couldn't afford it). A kind man offered to buy me one, but I told him that I couldn't accept it. I think he thought I was some kind of loon, standing there, staring at it with tears streaming down my face... He told me to come back at 9pm on off chance that they might be reduced at the end of the day.

Several days later I overheard two young women with small children talking about food banks at the bus stop and I started crying again.

How has it come to this?

It's not quite as nice but Aldi do frozen mango and it's a big bag Flowers about 500g for £1.99
I love the fresh mango too, especially the ready prepped but it's so expensive
I would have bought you the mango too if you accepted so don't feel he thought you were odd!

katepilar · 08/05/2023 22:51

It costs to produce food. Britain had it for cheap for too long.

LiveAHappyLifeBePositive · 08/05/2023 22:52

Olive oil at Aldi a year ago was £2:49. Now it’s £4.49
Bread flour was 50p now it’s £1:15

Ive stopped buying the bread flour I buy the cheap plain flour and make my own bread flour by adding vital wheat gluten . I’m also mixing vegetable oil 50/50 with olive oil and pretending to myself it’s exactly the same thing.

Notjustabrunette · 08/05/2023 22:52

Swrigh1234 · 08/05/2023 21:08

There is definitely some profiteering going on. It makes no sense that food inflation is still almost 20% unlike the rest of the world. The consumer is being taken for a ride.

Incorrect, the cost of goods at source has increased, transport costs and costs to run the stores and offices have all increased. This has also happened in Europe where a lot of the produce comes from. It’s a sector I work in and have seen the prices. What index are you using to compare to the rest of the world?

stbrandonsboat · 08/05/2023 22:54

My eldest son is visiting atm and I went to Sainsbury's to get him some foods in, mainly tinned stuff that he likes. Some bacon, bread, cornflakes, shampoo, other mundane stuff. No treats, alcohol, other meat etc. It came to £84 😢 we usually shop at Lidl, but they don't have a big range and he has a food allergy, so I have to buy branded stuff sometimes.

AreMyDucksinarow · 08/05/2023 22:54

I agree it’s depressing times when it’s cheaper to buy school dinners than make a healthy lunchbox for the kids.

I truly believe a lot of it is profiteering, yes some production cost have gone up by not by the value that we are paying. Especially as they seem to be having record profits.

Aldi is more expensive than M&S on some things.

I used to bake my own bread and cakes, now it’s cheaper to buy them (cost of flour/butter/eggs are very expensive compared to 1 year ago)

LiveAHappyLifeBePositive · 08/05/2023 22:57

Okunevo · 08/05/2023 22:48

Parsnips, leeks, kale, cauliflower, carrots, cabbage? Beetroot and winter squash also store well through winter. Sure there are lots more I can't think of this minute.

Show quote history

Potatoes, jerusalem artichokes. Most root crops if kept in an absorbent sack.

Or everything if it’s put in the freezer.

threecupsofteaminimum · 08/05/2023 22:58

It's cheaper to buy a cake than make one now, I did an admittedly large, raspberry Victoria sponge this weekend and the ingredients weren't much under twenty quid.

DishwasherHelp · 08/05/2023 22:59

We eat one chicken per month. We can't afford to eat more than that AND buy ethically. It's a choice - ethical or regular. I choose ethical, because I have to live with myself and my choices. Being ethical is fuck all to do with money - it's a choice that is anyone's to make.

I fucking hate animal cruelty and will NOT support it.

TeenLifeMum · 08/05/2023 23:00

I’ve noticed the last couple of weeks prices have shot top. I don’t usually pay much attention. My weekly shop was £150 a week with one bigger one a month with persil and dishwasher tablets etc that would be about £180. Now a normal shop is £200. It’s mad.

Those saying our food prices are lower than overseas… yes, so are our salaries.

Okunevo · 08/05/2023 23:00

LiveAHappyLifeBePositive · 08/05/2023 22:57

Potatoes, jerusalem artichokes. Most root crops if kept in an absorbent sack.

Or everything if it’s put in the freezer.

Show quote history

Forgot Jerusalem artichokes, I'm planning on getting some to plant. We eat a lot of onions in winter too, onion soup with cheese on toast is delicious.