Breaking the Tesco habit. Day 7...

[BrummieOnTheRun]

Two things kicked off this experiment:

1. A growing discomfort at donating almost our entire household budget (and some) to a retailer I feel more and more dubious about. A documentary on their food quality was the nail in that particular coffin.

2. An urgent need to cut the household budget!

But can I boycott Tescos - one of the cheapest retailers - AND reduce our spending? Hmmm.

Day 1: go to Neville's shop. Asked why veg box hasn't arrived as ordered. Neville tells me he's been burgled by kids and they've cleaned out a lot of stock and the money he had on the premises. Neville's nearly 70. He looks like he's been floored. Wonder what would happen if we all just channelled a proportion of our spending to people like Neville. He gives me a free real nappy to try and we have a nice chat!

Next day, run out of washing up liquid. Go to local corner shop. And buy...washing up liquid. NOTHING ELSE!! That's a first.

Over the week have shopped at about 7 different stores and stalls for things I'd have bought exclusively from Tescos. 2 were a complete rip off, with food that went off immediately. But found a couple of stars.

There's no way I could do this if I was working full time. Wish more small shops would do home delivery.

Gave in and went to Tescos on B/Holiday. Bad planning.

But at the end of the week:

• Our bins, for the first time EVER, are not overflowing on collection day.

• We seem to be almost completely vegetarian, which is difficult because we don't eat pasta/bread much. good meat is far too expensive, and not sure i trust local butcher.

• I've used cash almost exclusively. That wasn't the plan but I now think me and DH should start setting a weekly budget in cash and stop using debit cards.

• I don't know yet if we've spent less money, but we've definitely wasted less.

But now I have to load 2 kids + baby into the car to go and find nappies. They would normally have arrived on the back of their own lorry with guilt-ridden regularity.

And next week will be a challenge. The big stuff - washing powder, dishwasher powder, shampoos, etc - are running out. Tesco very cheap for this stuff. Do I give in and give them my money, or spend more money somewhere else? Hmmmm....

I am in Brighton too and lived using local shops and the market only for years and eventually was spending less than half of supermarket bill.Stopped as I got a bit lazy but have started again this week and have only spent £18 so far and we are eating v healthy and much less packaging

Oh but Brummie - b*gger all difference to Tescos but a heck of a lot more to the small local retailer.
We give our organic box people £750 a year, I've just realised (we buy milk and yoghurt from them as well as veg)

I think it's great, deffo not a waste - just think if lots of people did the same!

We actually have a milkman who does our street, but no idea how to contact him other than shout out of window at 5am!

I am using the car more I think (because 3 kids in/on buggy + shopping bags doesn't work). So the green lobby wouldn't approve. Tesco delivery man probably more environmentally friendly ironically. hey ho. I don't feel we can do everything at the same time, so I've picked my priorities.

There is NO way you can do this and work though. Sunday Times article possibly right - we're going back 100 yrs in terms of women's domestic duties! (washing nappies, organising recycling, daily shopping...)

As a neighbour who has milk if you can leave him a note to come and see you re delivery......(I get my veg box off mine too)

ASK .... (doah)

guess i should have worked that one out for myself, blackduck! still getting used to the fact you can talk to your neighbours down here without worrying whether they'll stab you .

It is not just the duty of the woman of the house though although I do acknowledge we do end up doing the bulk of all this stuff.If you rope everyone in it is a lot easier and working does make it more difficult but not impossible

Yeah, Brummie, when I go back to work I don't know how much of this I'll keep up.

We'll still get the veg box but I don't know if I'll have time to make nourishing soups out of the leftovers.

We will also still go and pootle round the farmers' market on alternate Saturdays and that's where we get meat, cheese and pies, so it adds up to quite a bit.

Can't imagine wanting to spend the rest of Saturday trudging round the chemist and pounds shops though.

OK I;m in. We have a local ethical food com[pany too and I've kept swearing to use thme but now is the week I must do it since I'm not at work.

You're right Noddyh. but if you do work, it would mean dedicating much more of your precious time at the weekend to local shopping.

I guess it could be made fun for kids, and might make them 'connect' more with food?

Food goes off so quickly, though, which is why almost-daily shopping has reduced our waste dramatically. And i've stopped 'over shopping'. if we run out, we run out. Very difficult if you shop weekly unless you do meal plans or batch cook. Very few people could commit to do that regularly.

If you need any more information about natural cleaners, try these threads:

Bleach fiend
green cleaning methods and
All-purpose cleaner .

I tend to make batches and freeze certain things like soups.I agree that if you need one thing and you got to a supermarket you spend 30 quid.I have enough usually to make a couple of quick meals in the cupboards so if we are running low it is egg on toast or nothing!

I'm in too.
Will take out a certain amount of cash each week, and shop at small local shops and markets.
Great thread, brummie.

Brummie - I have found you also get better at minimising waste by using things in the right order.

I live in the Forest of dean and our local market consists of a card stall and a dodgy clothes stall.

All major stores are about a 30 min drive that's why we have tesco deliver to save on fuel.

We have a co-op, tesco express, somerfield and 2 butchers which are really expensive and 1 greengrocer which also seems over priced.
No wilkinson's, lidl, aldi, morrisons ect,

Try soapnuts for washing. They're not too great on tough stains on whites, but tons cheaper to use for colours.

I need to get better at doing that noddy.

just nipped off to make DD1 a tuna pitta. How many tins of tuna in the cupboard?

EIGHT! EIGHT!!

All on special offer at the time. Thought I was getting a GREAT deal! Had so much stuff building up in the cupboard, forgot I already had a 4 pack. So bought another one!

That's money in mr tesco's account, not mine, and I get 8 weeks worth of tuna sitting in my cupboard. That's a bloody stupid savings plan.

Am resolving to finally use the tins that have sat in the cupboard for months. Need to look up tinned lentil and kidney bean recipes!

soapnuts??

Know what you mean about the tuna - I have 6 bottles of washing up liquid

Six bottles of liquid soap - BOGOFs.

brummie - tuna and kidney bean chillie with pasta?

Try this site as well

www.bigbarn.co.uk/

Pop in your postcode and it gives you places in your area where you can get locally produced fruit, veg, meat etc.

It also gives you recipes for in season food which is useful.

sahmtotwo, you're a goddam genius!

I've just found the milkman AND a wine company on that site!

If more people knew about great sites like that it would make it a million times easier to use local companies.

colditz - great suggestion! now do you have a recipe suggestion for tuna (I know where i'll be getting my protein from, at least!), coconut milk and an out of date lemon stir fry sauce?

Tuna thai curry!